No trust in the Bundeswehr: Germans’ fear of war is increasing sharply

No trust in the Bundeswehr
The Germans’ fear of war increases sharply

The fear of war has not been as great as it is now since 1999: More than half of Germans fear that the Federal Republic could be drawn into the war. Only a few of the citizens surveyed still have confidence in the Bundeswehr.

A year after the Russian attack on Ukraine, the fear of war among Germans is increasing significantly. A large majority fears that the Federal Republic is not capable of defense and will itself become a war party. This is from a current Special survey by R+V insurance in Wiesbaden.

Accordingly, 63 percent of citizens fear that the Federal Republic will not be able to defend itself in the event of war. In a survey from the previous year, the value was still 40 percent. The poor state of the Bundeswehr is reflected in the result, it said.

Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius recently declared that bottlenecks had to be overcome. “We’re giving away almost everything we have,” Pistorius said on Deutschlandfunk about the ammunition deliveries to Ukraine. However, the Bundeswehr had to hold back ammunition “on a small scale” for national and alliance defense. “If we pull empty, we would no longer be able to protect the eastern flank in the event of aggression.”

Differences between East and West

More than every second respondent (55 percent) also fears that Germany could become involved in a war. This is an increase of 13 points compared to 2022. There was only one higher value in the three decades of the long-term study “The Fears of the Germans”: In 1999, during the Kosovo war, fear was 60 percent.

In the long-term study, women are generally more anxious than men. This also applies to the survey on fears of war. This difference is most evident in the fear of a war involving Germany. While 63 percent of women fear German participation in the war, only 48 percent of men fear it.

According to the study, there are also differences between East and West. While two-thirds of East Germans (66 percent) fear a war with German participation, 53 percent of those surveyed in the West do so. In March, around 1,000 Germans were asked about their fears of war in the special survey.

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