![]() ![]() ![]() When I'm on the train in uniform, some people thank me. ![]() RON: (Through interpreter) Our history makes us hesitant, afraid of taking the wrong step or assuming the wrong role that could be misunderstood. Lieutenant Ron says being a soldier in Germany is not like being a soldier in America. Its history, often associated with Germany's troubled past, was reassessed. Conscription was eliminated, and it became harder for leaders to justify a big military in a new era of peace and rebuilding. But after the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification, government after government chipped away at the Bundeswehr. All men were required to serve either in the military or the civilian corps when they turned 18. Back in the Cold War, the Bundeswehr was well-funded, one of the world's strongest militaries. SCHMITZ: He found that in the Bundeswehr, Germany's army. I wanted a job that would make me equally proud where I could still wear the eagle. RON: (Through interpreter) It was the first time I wore the German eagle on my chest, and it made me proud. Before he joined the army, he competed for the national judo team. His face all the way down to the tips of his beard is lathered in green and black paint. The soldier, Lieutenant Ron, stares into the rain, relaxed. The wind and the rain mean the self-propelled howitzer 2000s need to adjust their positions. SCHMITZ: There they are, barrels aimed at low, dark clouds showering rain on the pastoral landscape below. The howitzers, though, are waiting for us. ![]() ROB SCHMITZ, BYLINE: I was promised gunfire, howitzers and soldiers in action, but when I arrive to the Baumholder military base in southwest Germany, I'm told there won't be any soldiers firing guns. Has that extra money helped? NPR's Rob Schmitz has traveled the country to find out. SHAPIRO: Just days after the war began, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a $100 billion boost to upgrade and strengthen his country's military. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine last February, Germany's security apparatus has been under increased scrutiny. The German government today announced a new defense minister to replace its last one, who resigned yesterday after a year of missteps. ![]()
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