The Bundeswehr Mission Against the IS - The Right Signal

Since 2015 Germany has participated in the military struggle against the "Islamic State" (IS). This mission, which is carried out within the framework of an international coalition, consists of two components: Firstly, the Bundeswehr supports the training of the militias of the largely autonomous Iraqi province of Kurdistan in Arbil and the Iraqi armed forces in Baghdad. On the other hand, it provides reconnaissance from Jordan for anti-IS missions of the international military coalition in Syrian airspace. After a long controversy, the Merkel government has agreed on a continuation of the mandate, which would otherwise have expired on October 31, 2019; the Bundestag has yet to decide on this. In all probability, the opposition factions will vote against it with two arguments: The IS was defeated and Germany was not allowed to contribute to the implementation of American Middle East policy. But there are a number of arguments in favor of this mission.