On 18 March 2022, Senior Course 140 attended the last day of the Field Study’s virtual travels to European capitals. The day was dedicated to Germany and included three presentations on Germany’s Defence Policy and contributions to NATO, the EU and the UN.
The NATO Defense College’s Director of Academic Policy and Planning (DAPP) opened the day with welcome remarks; followed by Lieutenant General Markus Laubenthal, Deputy Chief of Defence, who condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and discussed NATO’s and Germany’s contribution to support Ukraine and neighbouring countries. He also reiterated Germany’s support for NATO and emphasized that “Alliance cohesion is a key to success”.
The first presentation by Dr Karl-Heinz Kamp, Special Envoy of the Political Director from the Ministry of Defence and former Director of the NDC Research Division, was a “Tour d Horizon” of German Security and Defence Policy, with three sub-topics including security threats and challenges; the principles of German security policy; and Germany’s role in NATO and the EU.
In the next session, Colonel GS Ralph Christian Meyer, Chief of Branch Strategy and Operation II 5, gave an overview of Bundeswehr operations, perspectives, and global threats and challenges with insights on Germany’s contributions to NATO, the EU and the UN; policy guidelines for the Indo-Pacific region; and Germany’s commitments for strengthening NATO’s Eastern flank.
The last presentation on “Key aspects of German Security Policy: guiding principles, current state & challenges ahead” was given by Dr Claudia Major, from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. Dr Major delivered a comprehensive briefing on how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to fundamental changes in the German Defence policy, which she qualified as revolutionary measures by German standards.
All presentations were followed by a Q&A session.
NDC Public Affairs Office
(Prepared by Ms Sofia Carvalheiro, PRT C)
Collège de Défense de l'OTAN