https://sputnikglobe.com/20240426/germany-creates-a-veterans-day-to-honor-those-who-fought-in-the-bundeswehr-breaking-taboo-1118119864.html
Germany Creates a ‘Veteran’s Day’ to Honor Those Who Fought in the Bundeswehr, Breaking Taboo
Germany Creates a ‘Veteran’s Day’ to Honor Those Who Fought in the Bundeswehr, Breaking Taboo
Sputnik International
In 2008, the country introduced a new military decoration for bravery, which gave troops the honor for the first time since World War II, and in 2009 a memorial to soldiers who died while serving in the Bundeswehr was built at the Defense Ministry. Yet a holiday such as this has not occurred since its creation.
2024-04-26T05:03+0000
2024-04-26T05:03+0000
2024-04-26T05:03+0000
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The German parliament has passed a bill that will create the first annual national “veterans’ day” to honor people who have served in the military. The creation of the holiday breaks a long-held taboo in the country around the homage of soldiers, given Germany’s history regarding World War II and Nazism.The proposal will create a memorial day on June 15 each year, after Members of Parliament in the Bundestag lower house approved the proposal following an agreement made between the government and the conservative opposition. The celebration will be celebrated “publicly and visibly” and improved follow-up care for wounded veterans will also be called for, according to one report.The decision was made in an effort to boost public acceptance of the armed forces while also making service in the volunteer army more attractive as Germany increases its defense capabilities. A report from February suggests that German defense officials are privately contacting British and French NATO allies for a potential nuclear weapons deal as an alternative to their nuclear dependency on the US.Germany fears not only imaginary threat from Russia, but is also concerned that a second Donald Trump presidency will lead the US to disengage themselves from NATO. The debate is a difficult one for the country, as Germany has already surrendered the use of both nuclear energy and the atomic bomb.The new holiday will honor all Germans who have worn the German military uniform, not just those wounded or killed in combat. One party did raise objections to the initiative - the left-wing party Linke.Officials within the Bundeswehr have said that long-term underfunding has made their military unfit to fight, Thursday’s report adds. Thomas Wiegold, a military affairs expert said that the call will also address emergency preparedness for natural disasters. But regarding border security, the country is still divided.While East Germany has celebrated its National People’s Army with military parades, West Germany has avoided calling attention to their soldiers given the history regarding World War II and the Holocaust.Since World War II, Germany has been cautious regarding militarism and war. Following the country’s reunification in 1990, then-Chancellor Helmut Kohl first broke ground by sending German troops abroad to serve as military medics for a UN mission to Cambodia in 1992.
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Germany Creates a ‘Veteran’s Day’ to Honor Those Who Fought in the Bundeswehr, Breaking Taboo
In 2008, the country introduced a new military decoration for bravery, which gave troops the honor for the first time since World War II, and in 2009 a memorial to soldiers who died while serving in the Bundeswehr was built at the Defense Ministry. Yet a holiday such as this has not occurred since its creation.
The German parliament has passed a bill that will create the first annual national “veterans’ day” to honor people who have served in the military. The creation of the holiday breaks a long-held taboo in the country around the homage of soldiers, given Germany’s history regarding World War II and Nazism.
The proposal will create a memorial day on June 15 each year, after Members of Parliament in the Bundestag lower house approved the proposal following an agreement made between the government and the conservative opposition. The celebration will be celebrated “publicly and visibly” and improved follow-up care for wounded veterans will also be called for, according to one
report.
The decision "is a strong, important and, yes, an overdue signal of recognition and appreciation," Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told lawmakers, adding that the new holiday would counteract the presumption “that our lives in freedom and peace are a given”.
The decision was made in an effort to boost public acceptance of the armed forces while also making service in the volunteer army more attractive as Germany increases its defense capabilities. A
report from February suggests that German defense officials are privately contacting British and French NATO allies for a potential nuclear weapons deal as an alternative to their nuclear dependency on the US.
Germany fears not only imaginary threat from Russia, but is also concerned that a second Donald Trump presidency will lead the US to disengage themselves from
NATO. The debate is a difficult one for the country, as Germany has already surrendered the use of both nuclear energy and the atomic bomb.
The new holiday will honor all Germans who have worn the German military uniform, not just those wounded or killed in combat. One party did raise objections to the initiative - the left-wing party Linke.
Officials within the Bundeswehr have said that long-term underfunding has made their military unfit to fight, Thursday’s report adds. Thomas Wiegold, a military affairs expert said that the call will also address emergency preparedness for natural disasters. But regarding border security, the country is still divided.
“In Germany you have an east-west split whether you see a threat from Russia as realistic, and interestingly it tends to be discounted in the east,” he said. The Bundeswehr was first founded in 1955, and served as West Germany’s military until the country reunified in 1990. More than 10 million people have served in the Bundeswehr.
While East Germany has celebrated its National People’s Army with military parades, West Germany has avoided calling attention to their soldiers given the history regarding World War II and the Holocaust.
Since World War II, Germany has been cautious regarding militarism and war. Following the country’s reunification in 1990, then-Chancellor Helmut Kohl first broke ground by sending German troops abroad to serve as military medics for a UN mission to Cambodia in 1992.
