It is not an exaggeration to say that it would not have occurred to the German government of its own accord to engage in military activities in Mali.
Solidarity with France played a major role, and Berlin basically followed the strategic agenda of its closest partner.
It was similar in Afghanistan, where the Americans demanded loyalty to the Alliance.
And in both cases Germany is now experiencing that taking part does not mean taking part in the decision-making process.
Biden ordered the withdrawal from the Hindu Kush, although Berlin wanted to stay longer.
Macron ends the anti-terrorist operation Barkhane, which was the focus of the French intervention in the Sahel zone, while Germany continues to hold out in the UN peacekeeping force MINUSMA and an EU operation.
In together, out together, was once a NATO principle.
If foreign assignments go wrong, this can at best be understood from a logistical point of view.
In principle, there is nothing wrong with this.
Every country has to know for itself what and for how long it is using its soldiers.
But it does say something about the weight assigned to the Bundeswehr's contributions if allies see no need to coordinate with Germany. In Berlin, over the years, too often people have avoided the difficult parts of the missions and given too many theoretical lectures. Apparently neither Macron nor five states in the Sahel zone were interested in this on Friday.