In view of the foreseeable renewed dispatch of German soldiers to Afghanistan, the planned closing roll call and big tattoo are to be postponed for the previous deployment.
Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer announced this on Saturday in Berlin.
She will propose this to the Federal Cabinet in coordination with Bundestag President Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU).
“Against the background of developments in Afghanistan, now is not the right time for an appropriate accounting and appraisal.
The full attention is given to the evacuation of those to be protected, ”said a message from the CDU politician.
The Bundeswehr ended its almost 20-year mission in the Hindu Kush with the return of the last soldiers at the end of June.
On August 31st, there was to be a wreath-laying ceremony, an appeal and talks between Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his bereaved and relatives in the Bendler Block, the seat of the Defense Ministry in Berlin.
Then the tattoo in front of the Reichstag building was planned.
Starmer calls for aid to Afghanistan
Now the Bundeswehr is to be sent to Afghanistan again to evacuate German citizens and local staff who have worked for Germany.
To do this, the Bundestag has to issue a new mandate.
Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) also spoke about this on Saturday in an emergency meeting with part of the government.
"It was discussed how, with the help of the Bundeswehr, the fastest possible return of employees of the German embassy and German organizations working in Afghanistan as well as Afghan local staff can be guaranteed," a government spokesman said on request on Saturday.
"The German Bundestag will be involved in such a decision," he affirmed.
According to the information, the Chancellor consulted with Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (both SPD) as well as Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU), Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU), Chancellery Minister Helge Braun (CDU) and a representative of the Ministry for Economic Affairs Collaboration. This was done in a conference call. The spokesman said that voting was currently taking place on the exact procedure.
The head of the British Labor Party, Keir Starmer, has meanwhile called on the government in London to act in the face of the Taliban's swift conquest. "What I want to see is that our government takes matters into hand and calls an extraordinary meeting of NATO and the UN Security Council," Starmer told journalists in London on Saturday. Britain could not just run away and allow Afghanistan to develop into a humanitarian crisis and a potential refugee crisis. The Afghan government has asked for support and should be complied with, Starmer said.