29 Mar 2024
Sunday 13 December 2015 - 16:34
Story Code : 192280

The reasons behind German military intervention in Syria

Alwaght- First scene: Following the Paris terrorist attacks and after Merkel-Hollande meeting in Berlin, Germanys government has announced on December 1 that it passed a plan to provide military back-up for Frances anti-ISIS campaign and it handed the plan to the Bundestag, the countys federal legislative body.

The Bundestag, on December 2, has overwhelmingly approved the plan, authorizing the German government to intervene in Syria for a full year, namely until December 30, 2016, with a funding of 134 million, sending about 1,200 troops, using four to six Tornado reconnaissance planes, deploying a frigate, as well as sending military experts to the anti-ISIS Western coalitions command centers. Although the German plan comes as an aiding and support mission to the war against ISIS, it is significant due to troops dispatching to the battlefield, the level of participation and the review in Germanys no-war policy after the World War II.

Second scene: Germanys federal intelligence service (BND) in the wake of Paris crisis following the terror attacks has published an anti-Saudi report, announcing the kingdom's policies as the source of destabilization in the Middle East, voicing concerns about the King Salman of Saudi Arabia and his son Mohammad bin Salam for moves to influence the regions Arab leaders and the ongoing interventions in Iraq, Bahrain, Lebanon and Yemen.

Not long after the report was rejected by the spokespersons of the German government and Foreign Ministry, Sigmar Gabriel, the head of Germanys Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Germany's Vice Chancellor, and Thomas Oberman, the head of SPDs fraction in the Bundestag have more straightforwardly called on Saudi Arabia to cease backing the radical Islamists and the Europe-based mosques. According to the two German politicians, Al-Qaeda and ISIS terrorist groups had roots in the Islam model that the Saudi Arabia has developed and supported, and the extremist European Islamists all rose from the communities which maintain links to the Wahhabi mosques in Europe.

The first question is why Germany has accepted to intervene in Syria militarily in support of France and to fight ISIS, and the second question is that what is the purpose behind leaking of the German intelligences report? Although Berlin has presented a series of legal reasons for the leak including reaction to the UNSC resolution 2249, which is not part of Chapter 7, as well as a response to Frances demand for help according to the Article 42(7) of the Treaty of Lisbon. However, the analysts see the major reasons for the Germanys move as political, originating from the countrys domestic and foreign policies rather than from legal motives.

Germanys new foreign policy

In the Munich Security Conference held in 2014, the German President Joachim Gauck for the first time after the World War II has officially talked about the need of change in Berlin foreign policy and reviewing the traditional conservatism in using the military force and military intervention.

Following Gaucks speech, a new discourse under more power, more responsibility title rose to normalize on the one hand the countrys new role in international level and its rising power among the local and foreign public opinions and on the other hand to legitimize Germanys move towards being a geopolitical power as equal as the EU or under its name.

According to the new discourse, the happening of many crises (like the Syrian crisis, the refugee crisis and the terrorist attacks), the change in European and global order and other developments coming up as a result of globalization and power transition force Germany to shoulder more responsibilities in global levels. This German approach was observable in Germanys Defense Ministers speech in Bundestag when he proposed the Syria intervention plan to the federal parliament. He said that the main goal of the German move was to ensure stability and peace in the Middle East rather than to support France.

No matter what the reasons behind shift in Germanys foreign policy are, which could include domestic necessity, the request of the US and other European powers like Britain and France, incorporating Germany to share the costs of making order, and Germanys concerns about distortion of the order that Berlin backs its economic type and economic policies, it is obvious that Germany cannot keep itself out of touch as usual and in such cases as Libyas. Therefore, a large part of the reason for Germanys action can be searched in the shift in the countrys foreign policy and the role Berlin is seeking to take internationally.

Internal policy and its relation to anti-ISIS fight

While France has said that it would only accept about 30,000 refugees fleeing the Syrian crisis, Mrs. Merkels policy of open doors would admit to Germany about a million of refugees up to the end of the year. Europes first ladys policy has pushed down her popularity to a lowest level in recent years, and the Paris terrorist attacks and the domino effect they left on Europe have added to the popularity of such German parties as Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Especially that modifying its Eurosceptic policies and putting on a nationalistic and anti-immigration face, the right-wing AfD party has managed to more than ever improve its position and make the most out of the current conditions. The success of Marine le Pen, the leader of Frances National Front party, in the countrys recent elections would undoubtedly make a good example for AfD in Germany. Such an issue has drawn the sensitivity of Merkels right-wing fraction in the parliament and its traditional ally the Christian Democratic Union of Germany.

Thereby, Angela Merkel is coming under fire domestically and internationally. And the notion is increasingly growing that as the free-business plan led in loss of the former German chancellor Gerhard Schroder in 2005 election, Merkels open-door refugee policy could be her Achilles heel in Germanys political outlook.

Given the mentioned background, declaring the solidarity with France is a ray of hope for Merkel and in exchange for it she receives Frances company for the refugee plan and the its costs and at the same time eases the domestic pressures on her, and the 10 million joint plan proposed by the French and German Finance Ministers for appropriate management of the refugee crisis and fighting terrorism could be assessed as being in line with the same policy.

The second reason returns to Germanys shifted understanding of the threat posed by Salafi-Wahhabi terrorism. Unlike the United States, Europe and countries like German see themselves as being directly engaged with the consequences of the Syrian crisis, therefore, the threat against Germany is serious and immediate.

According to Germanys federal intelligence service, the number of German Muslims supporting Salafi thought has jumped from 5,500 in 2013 to 7,900 in 2015, and the number of the German nationals who joined the terror group ISIS has persistently been on the rise. Fears form the residing Salafis in Germany on the one hand and the possible return of the experienced Salafis from Syrias war on the other hand excessively added to the Germanys recognition of the threat presented by Wahhabi terrorism, and by the way, the key to leaking of the BNDs report and the German officials straightforward remarks have roots in German concerns.

By leaking the intelligence data, Germany bluntly warns Saudi Arabia that Berlin would hold Riyadh government accountable for any possible terror attacks conducted in the country and it asks Saudi regime to prevent such attacks form taking place using the strong financial and ideological bonds it holds with Wahhabi Mosques imams in Germany. Therefore, releasing of German intelligence services information and the German officials viewpoints that followed the release should be considered as a calculated move originating from the Berlins shift in vision about the threats coming from Wahhabi-Salafi terrorism.

Joining France, keeping standing Europe's convergence project

In addition to voicing solidarity with France, Berlin has agreed to deploy 650 troops to Mali as part of the UN peacekeeping mission (MINUSMA) in order to decrease the pressure on France and to allow Paris focus on its war against ISIS terror group. Looking at the case from domestic policys dimension, the bilateral German-French company could be seen as another Merkels measure taken, beside offering Turkey financial and political incentives and ignoring the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans violations of the human rights, to alleviate the criticism targeting her open-door immigration policy.

Germanys move to join anti-ISIS fight could also be interpreted through looking at Germanys regarding EUs convergence agenda and it could be a concession to achieve a consensus in a European Union in which France and Germany are the two major driving powers. In other words, Germanys agreeing to join the French counter-ISIS campaign is seen to be coming in exchange for Frances supporting of giving Ankara financial and political incentives and accompanying Merkels immigration policies.

Such a concessions result ends up in favor of France rather than Germany and by taking over role in military and security cases, France is modifying the Germanys upper hand it obtained after Euro crisis, as Paris seeks to mend its prestige in EU. It is through this dimension that it can be figured out that why after Paris terror attacks the French President Franois Hollande demanded help not from NATO but from the EU under the Unions common security and defense policy , namely the Article 42(7) of Treaty of Lisbon. Beside NATOs organizational limits and the several issues, including Russias reaction that the organizations intervention could bring about, such a French move to press Berlin and reach a balance with Germanys leading role (in the EU) could not be easily ignored.

By Alwaght
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