In summer 2022, the Bundestag established a Study Commission with the aim of drawing lessons from Germany’s involvement in Afghanistan for foreign and security policy in future. The Commission, comprised of twelve Members of the Bundestag and twelve experts, will investigate the entire period of German involvement in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021. On this basis, approaches are to be developed with a view to optimising the networked approach as a fundamental principle of German foreign policy. The networked, or comprehensive, approach to security policy describes the interconnection of military, police, diplomatic, development policy and humanitarian instruments in assignments within the framework of international peacekeeping missions. Whether this approach was the correct one, and what the interplay between military and civilian measures in international crisis management should look like if it is to succeed – these are the points on which the Study Commission is to make proposals for the future to the Bundestag. By the end of this electoral term at the latest, it will present Parliament with its recommendations for action regarding Germany’s future involvement in international crisis regions.
