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The Department of Defense is trying to spark a wide debate on drone weapons. The ministry and the armed forces want to discuss the combat drone first “honestly and unconditionally.” The left thinks this is a lie, the acquisition and deployment are already underway.
With a social debate, the Federal Defense Ministry wants to reduce the reserves on the purchase of combat drones for the Bundeswehr. At the start of a hearing at the Berlin Ministry, the Secretary of State for Defense, Peter Tauber of the CDU, spoke of “one of the most important and controversial defense policy issues of the day”, on which society should debate “honestly and unconditionally”. The Ministry and the Federal Armed Forces have already made it clear that they believe an acquisition would make sense. Therefore, the left criticized the audience as an “alibi event”.
The Defense Ministry wants to give “all arguments their place in the debate,” Tauber said. Parties, parliamentarians, representatives of civil society, scientists and soldiers must participate. For him, it was a question of whether Bundeswehr soldiers could be trusted to use these weapons “as responsibly as they normally do, according to clear rules of action,” Tauber said, and he himself replied: “I want say we should have this confidence. ”
Left-wing defense expert Andrej Hunko criticized the audience as a sham. The purchase and use of such weapons are already being prepared, Hunko said in a written communication. “Of course, the coalition will decide on weapons, no matter what comes out of the ‘drone debate.'” The MP reported on the ministry’s plans to move the “Heron TP” drone to Afghanistan in 2021 to support German operations.
“Do not lower the threshold of violence”
Until now, the Bundeswehr has only used unarmed drones for reconnaissance. She does not have armed combat drones. The new Heron TP drone will be used in Afghanistan starting next year. This stems from a response by the Defense Ministry to a request from the left.
The Heron TP is armed, so it can be equipped for combat drones. Such drones are politically controversial, they are also considered a potential conflict issue in the grand coalition. Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer of the CDU spoke in favor of its acquisition during a visit to Afghanistan in December.
During the hearing, Bundeswehr Inspector General Eberhard Zorn rejected fears that the use of drones would pose incalculable risks. Attack decisions “would not be automated,” he said. “The decisive factor is and remains the human being.” The use of drones will cause “not to lower the threshold of violence”. But it could “help protect our soldiers in action,” for example, in Mali or Afghanistan.
The general emphasized that, unlike the United States, the Bundeswehr would never use armed drones to kill people; There is no legal basis for this in Germany. Combat drones should only be used with a Bundestag mandate.
Protection of soldiers against danger to passers-by.
Outgoing Bundestag military representative Hans-Peter Bartels of the SPD also participated in the hearing. He also spoke in favor of buying combat drones because they could help protect soldiers in action.
Tauber admitted that there were also arguments against arming drones: “If we conduct that debate honestly, we will recognize the many dilemmas associated with such an operation,” he said. This raises the question of whether protecting soldiers themselves in action warrants the use of combat drones “if the risk to people not involved can increase,” Tauber said.
With the public hearing, the Ministry wants to implement a coalition agreement agreement, according to which the decision to arm with drones should only be made after “an extensive evaluation of international, constitutional and ethical law.”
