Military Report Released

The German parliament's military commissioner Reinhold Robbe released his annual report Tuesday about the shortcomings of the German armed forces. At the top of the list, Robbe said the Bundeswehr is underfinanced.

The lack of money causes problems for soldiers in several ways, the report said. Robbe decried the decaying condition of many of the military barracks. Some are filled with mold and ready to collapse, with disgusting bathrooms.

He also pointed out that soldiers are worried about their personal financial situations and remain at the bottom of their income groups.

Foreign missions causing financial strain

The military's financial strain needs to be taken into account before the government agrees to new deployments, Robbe said. There are some fears that Germany's army of 245,000 is overstretched, although only a relatively small percentage are engaged in foreign peacekeeping missions. There are currently 9,000 soldiers on foreign missions in places like Afghanistan, Lebanon and the Balkans.

"In every single case it needs to be tested whether the Bundeswehr is overburdened or overextended," he said.

Robbe, a Social Democratic Party (SPD) parliamentarian, is the designated defense commissioner for the German parliament. His role is to provide the government with an annual report about problems with the military. He also warns politicians about any problems in the military and to be an outside point of contact for soldiers.

Mistreatment not widespread

The German army has dealt with several high-profile scandals recently. Seven German soldiers face court martial for photographs which depict them posing and playing with human skulls while stationed in Afghanistan.

On Monday, a separate trial of 18 training staff began, charging the staff of mistreating as many as 163 armed forces personnel in 2004 at a base in Coesfeld near the northern German city of Münster. The civil trial is expected to last several weeks.

The staff are charged with mistreating recruits during allegedly unapproved exercises meant to toughen them up in the case of a hostage situation. There was a national outcry after German media reported on the alleged abuse.

Robbe said he was convinced the Coesfeld methods were not typical of the German army, and his report said such treatment did not occur at other military bases.

"In view of the information I've been given since, I can say that the armed forces have definitely learned from this incident," he said.