Document revealed

Germany’s secret plan for war against Russia

Bundeswehr soldiers during an exercise: Weapons and troop strength are not the only factors that determine successful military operations.(Bild: AFP/INA FASSBENDER)

The Russian attack on Ukraine has shaken Europe's security architecture. There are fears that Russia could soon attack other countries too. A leaked document shows how Germany is preparing for this emergency - and what major weaknesses the plan has.

As the US newspaper "Wall Street Journal" has uncovered, the plan for a war against Russia was drawn up around two and a half years ago in the Julius Leber Barracks in Berlin. Since then, the Bundeswehr has been working on implementing the specifications of the secret document entitled OPLAN DEU (short for: Operation Plan Germany).

Germany as a hub
The central idea behind the 1,200-page document is that Germany will play a key role as a NATO hub in the event of an emergency. Up to 800,000 soldiers from Germany, the USA and other NATO countries would then have to be deployed to the front in the east. The draft lists exactly which ports, rivers, train routes and roads will be used for this massive troop movement and how the NATO soldiers will be supplied and protected along the way.

An enormous logistical challenge due to the geography of Europe. With the Alps as a natural barrier (and Austria as a neutral country in front of it), NATO troops would in any case have to pass through Germany in the event of a confrontation with Russia: "No matter where exactly it starts," the Wall Street Journal quotes Tim Stuchtey from the Brandenburg Institute for Society and Security.

According to a NATO analysis, Russia will be ready and willing to attack members of the Western military alliance by the end of this decade. However, Europe is already confronted with Russia's hybrid warfare: Hacker attacks, sabotage and airspace violations by Russia are on the increase. The line between war and peace is becoming increasingly blurred. According to the authors of the secret plan, this requires civilian and military sectors to work more closely together again, similar to the way they did during the Cold War.

Ailing infrastructure as a weak point
This premise reveals what is currently the major weakness of the plan: whereas during the Cold War, for example, highways were built specifically so that they could also serve as emergency runways, this is no longer the case. Tunnels and bridges are sometimes too narrow or too weak for military convoys to use. Germany's infrastructure is generally dilapidated: many highways and highway bridges are in urgent need of repair, and Germany's ports in the North and Baltic Seas would also have to be expanded at a cost of billions in order to meet NATO's requirements.

The German government's special infrastructure fund is to be used to patch up the broken infrastructure. The planned military service reform is also intended to solve the Bundeswehr's personnel problem in the future.

Outdated laws
Another obstacle is the outdated legal situation: drones - indispensable in modern warfare - are not allowed to fly over built-up areas in Germany. In addition, according to the law, they would need position lights, which would make them useless in the event of war. Nevertheless, the Bundeswehr is confident about its progress. An officer and co-author of OPLAN DEU told the US newspaper: "Considering that we started from scratch at the beginning of 2023, we are very satisfied with what we have achieved today."