The German Military is one of the most important lines of defence for the federal republic in the heart of Western Europe. It is one of the most important parts of the Bundeswehr! Together with a civil part that falls with the armed forces administration, also known as the Wehrvelwaltung, the armed forces of Germany or the Military happens to form a key cluster of the celebrated Bundeswehr.
And while uniqueness has so often and beautifully defined the Bundeswehr, which actively recruits even non-German citizens to join the army, facets like a newly-launched Voluntary Military service program also define the scope of operation of the armed forces, the fulcrum around which Germany protects itself.
The Bundeswehr is a central tenet that defines the essence of German strength with there being no fewer than 184,017 active duty military personnel as of February 2021 along with 80,698 civilians making it the 30th largest military power in the whole world.
And where recent events stand, then Germany has launched a Voluntary Military Service program, which is aimed at recruiting young people. In fact, the design and conception of this Voluntary Military Service program is such that it shall look after the interest of the distressed and troubled, and those in dire straits especially during natural disasters with a bid to provide relief measures.
In fact, this new program is titled- the ‘Voluntary Military Service in Homeland Security,’ whose central aim is to encourage young individuals to take an year off and join the military service of the country before they explore their further studies or higher education.
Truth be told, the Voluntary Military Service program in Germany, keenly looked after by serving Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, was first announced last summer with the following motto: “Your Year For Germany.”
Efforts are being initiated to recruit women actively in the voluntary service toward the first line of defence of the country with there being as many as 52 women inductees as on date. Although, currently there are around 325 already enrolled in the year-long program.
On the occasion of a media interaction regarding the new German service, here’s what the bespectacled Kramp-Karrenbauer said, “We came up with this program after seeing that there were young people who were interested in joining the Bundeswehr but didn’t want to tie themselves down.”
Such programs, frankly speaking, are vital in the wake of emergence of sudden outbreaks such as the novel Coronavirus epidemic that strike unannounced akin to a rude shock. And as a matter of fact, it was back in 2020 during the pandemic where the German government conceptualised the said program in a bid to fight back against a threat that challenged the authority of the world, not just Germany.
Following a module of training that’s a mix of both combat and help, the Voluntary Military service program in Germany will offer active help at the frontline of catastrophe.
That being said, here’s what Deutsch Welt offered on the key breaking development from the German heartland:
The volunteers will start off their service with a three-month military basic training in 13 locations across Germany.
After that, they will take part in specialist training to learn how to protect buildings, depots and bridges, German public broadcaster Tagesschau reported.
Following seven months of training, the volunteers will then be committed to serving for five months at some point during the following six years. Their service can then be used when natural disasters hit — or during the next pandemic.