Reserve service: partnership between the district and the Bundeswehr

At the beginning of the year, the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg showed its appreciation for the armed forces, fire brigade, police and rescue services by displaying yellow ribbons and red, white and blue protective ribbons in the entrance areas of its administrative buildings. This appreciation for the Bundeswehr is now being further expressed in a "Homeland Security and Total Defence Partnership". In this agreement, the district and the Hesse State Command declare their willingness to work together to enable reserve service in Hesse and to establish an integrated security system.

Brigadier General Holger Radmann used his introduction to the region as the new commander of the Hesse State Command after around 90 days in office to ceremoniously hand over the declaration of partnership. The partnership was sealed with a certificate, which District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst accepted from Brigadier General Radmann.

Rainer Hesse, Chairman of the District Council, and Mayor Barbara Eckes, as the "landlady" of the only remaining Bundeswehr base in Waldeck-Frankenberg, also took part in the round of introductions in the Frankenberg administrative centre of the district on behalf of the civilian partner. The Brigadier General was accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel Michael Dude, Head of the Waldeck-Frankenberg District Liaison Command, and Major Horst Knauff, Regional Representative for Northern Hesse of the Hesse Regional Command.

The participants in the round table agreed that in today's complex and therefore increasingly vulnerable world, sustainable crisis management is only possible through comprehensive, networked cooperation between all those involved on the military and civilian side. As a task for society as a whole, the population and the economy must be involved in security provision, just as the Bundeswehr is already providing comprehensive assistance to civilian forces, e.g. in disaster control. The coronavirus pandemic could hardly have been managed so confidently by the district with its lead health authority if the soldiers of the Bundeswehr had not provided support in the vaccination centre, call centre or other important areas.

With the help of the partnership declaration, the district and the Bundeswehr hope to be able to gradually increase urgently needed personnel resources for homeland security, which also includes defence against cyber attacks. The measures mentioned in the partnership declaration include

• Release of volunteer reservists (m/f/d) within the scope of operational possibilities and operational requirements by the district,
• Internal communication of the willingness of the district to grant leave of absence,
• Support from regional representatives in the provision of reserve service by the Hesse State Command and
• Contribution to a structured security dialogue in Hesse within the scope of the district's own possibilities.

The more employers take part in the campaign, the greater the interest in reservist service and the greater the social acceptance of the offer.

Background
The Bundeswehr Reserve is an indispensable component of the Bundeswehr for national and alliance defence, homeland security and international crisis management operations. As a consequence of this, the Hesse State Command is establishing Homeland Defence Regiment 5 as one of a total of six regiments. Since September 2024, applicants have been sought for appointment to one of 1,200 posts. These units are to be deployed in the event of a crisis (natural disasters, particularly serious accidents, global medical emergencies/pandemics) and as part of national and alliance defence in Hesse.

The programme is aimed at German citizens up to the age of 57, regardless of whether they have already served in the Bundeswehr or not. Undeployed personnel first undergo basic training, similar to that of volunteers doing military service. Outside of a defence situation, involvement in homeland security remains voluntary. Reservists only practise if they can reconcile this with their other commitments.

Caption: Presenting the certificate for the "Homeland Security and Total Defence Partnership" between the district and the Bundeswehr: (from left to right) Lieutenant Colonel Dude, Mayor Eckes, District Administrator van der Horst, Brigadier General Radmann and Major Knauff. (Photo: District of Waldeck-Frankenberg)