On this occasion

Dear members of the Naval Officers' Association

Once again, we in Europe and the free world are at a turning point. Until Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, most people in Germany did not believe that a large-scale war of aggression against another country in Europe was still conceivable after the experience of two world wars. We were lulled into a false sense of security that economic integration and constant dialogue could contain the Russian president's lust for power.

We have acted according to the motto: What must not be, cannot be. We were thoroughly mistaken. We had to realise that our Western values are the real target of the attacks by Putin and his power clique in the Kremlin. We are now learning that the defence of freedom and democracy, the defence of our fundamental values, does not come for free. That is why, despite the coronavirus pandemic, despite high energy costs, despite the overdue investment in averting a climate catastrophe, an additional 100 billion euros is being invested in equipping the German armed forces. Mind you, this is in the EQUIPMENT, not the rearmament of our armed forces, which have been cut to the bone over the last two decades. Our navy will and must also benefit from this. I am quite sure that under the leadership of Vice Admiral Kaack, the existing deficits will now be reduced in a targeted manner. The navy, like the rest of the Bundeswehr, must once again be measured by its combat capability and combat value.

However, it is also about raising awareness of the dangers to which our values and our free lives are exposed. Since German reunification and the fall of the Iron Curtain, we have become so accustomed to a Europe without borders, to the right to express our opinions freely everywhere, that we could no longer imagine a different world. Russia is providing us with the alternative model with its suppression of freedom of expression, drastic punishments for any opposition to intimidate its own population, murders and attempted murders of political opponents. However, our Western system of values with freedom of expression and individual liberties is not only seen as a threat in Russia, but also in China.

I ask you all to actively and vocally stand up for the protection of freedom and democracy, for the protection of our values, for the necessity of an operational armed forces and to actively support our navy under its new leadership.

Thorsten Kähler

Rear Admiral (ret.)

Chairman of the Naval Officers' Association