The Re-Militarization of Germany

<p>In the decades after World War II and the atrocities of the Holocaust, Germany deliberately underinvested in its military. But that’s about to change.</p><p>Katrin Bennhold, a correspondent in Europe and former Berlin bureau chief, explains why Germany is re-entering an era of militarization, and what that will mean for its national identity.</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/katrin-bennhold">Katrin Bennhold</a>, a Germany and Europe correspondent for The New York Times.</p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/14/world/europe/germany-national-security-strategy.html?searchResultPosition=1">Germany adopted a more muscular security plan</a> in an attempt to set priorities, especially since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but politics may have weakened it.</li><li>German leaders are vowing to transform the country into a military power capable of taking responsibility for Europe’s security.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/24/magazine/germany-military-army.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article"> Can they — and a hesitant German society — follow through on that promise?</a></li></ul><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.</p>