Germany has Trouble Filling Special Forces Units
August 25, 2003
They’re the hardest soldiers in the German army. They get sent on the most delicate and secret missions, usually miles behind enemy lines with only the troops beside them for protection and support. They are the German army’s Special Forces, the Bundeswehr’s Kommandos Spezialkräfte (KSK).
No one in the armed forces is under any illusions about how difficult the KSK’s job is, especially in these times of heightened political instability. As the world’s hot spots get hotter, the demand for trained troops capable of dealing with the types of military and security threats that German nationals face at home and around the globe increases. However, the escalation in situations where Special Forces are needed is in direct contrast to the number of soldiers applying for positions among the best of the best.
More troops needed
The German Defense Ministry plans to beef up its KSK units to strengthen Germany’s role in the international "war on terrorism" and its ability to free citizens taken hostage abroad, but knows a concerted effort is needed to recruit enough new troops to face this demand. Defence Minister Peter Struck told Sunday newspaper Welt am Sonntag: “We plan to boost the number of men serving in the KSK to 1,000 from 450.”
“We don’t need any Rambos,” Struck said, referring to the renegade U.S. soldier in the Hollywood action film series, “but rather responsible soldiers for difficult tasks, such as liberating German citizens.”
Struck added that the KSK would probably face increasing demands abroad in the future, as German takes a more active postwar military role and in situations similar to the recent hostage operations conducted this year in Algeria and Mali. There German troops worked together with indigenous forces in the release of the European tourists who were taken hostage over a period of several weeks in the Sahara desert by Islamic extremists.
Shortfall is not new
The quoted figure of a 1000-strong elite force was originally the target number for KSK personnel at the unit’s formation in 1996. It was also announced as the optimum capacity in the 2001 review but recruitment then also fell well short.
The pressures of the job and the increased dangers the KSK troops are expected to expose themselves too is making a career in the Special Forces a less than desirable prospect for many soldiers. However, the Defense Ministry does have some explanation of its own for the drop in figures.
High physical and mental benchmark
A spokesperson was quoted in the German daily Tagespiegel as saying, “The benchmark for the physical and psychological capabilities for the troops is so high that fewer applicants are passing the entry test.” The spokesperson added that financial reasons were not a contributing problem in the declining numbers and that it was presently unclear to the ministry why the shortfall in applicants was so large.
Since its inception, the KSK has been involved in operations in Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia and more actively in hunting remnants of the ousted Taliban regime and al Qaeda operatives in Afghanistan as well as the recent hostage rescue in Algeria and Mali.