Do you actually know what a youth officer does? This term is often used to describe soldiers who go to schools and try to recruit minors for the Bundeswehr. In reality, they are men and women with pedagogical training who objectively educate schoolchildren on security policy.

They follow the triad of informing, explaining and classifying. Based on the Beutelsbach Consensus, which applies to political education in Germany, youth officers do not aggressively represent a particular opinion or attitude, they discuss controversial issues and enable students to develop their own opinions on a solid basis of information. Like all soldiers in our armed forces, they are citizens in uniform – standing firmly on the ground of the Basic Law and actively working to protect the free and democratic basic order.

Citizens in uniform – that is also the expectation that we as a society have of the men and women of the Bundeswehr. They should not only defend Germany and its people, but also represent society and be anchored in it. Unfortunately, this anchoring has become weaker since conscription was suspended 13 years ago. There is less exchange between soldiers and the rest of the population because in fact not everyone has at least one family member who has served in the armed forces.

Boris Pistorius’ concept of sending a questionnaire to everyone who comes of age will lead to at least a one-time, superficial look at the Bundeswehr from 2025 onwards. Nevertheless, since 2011, schoolchildren have automatically come into less contact with the Bundeswehr and therefore unfortunately also less with security policy issues. However, security and defence policy are more relevant than ever. There is a war in Europe, with all the dramatic consequences, primarily for Ukraine, but also with effects on us in Germany and the European Union.

It is essential that pupils are taught the ability to classify geopolitically complex issues, such as the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. Not only political science teachers, but also youth officers are trained and qualified to do this. The turning point must be internalised by society as a whole. Without security, everything is nothing, and we must invest more money, time and effort in this – each and every one of us. Resilience across the whole state and society does not come for free. It is even less available in a society that has a fundamental mistrust of the men and women of the Bundeswehr who are prepared to give their lives for it.

The need to inform and discuss the Bundeswehr and security policy in schools has long been recognized by the Bundestag’s Commissioner for the Armed Forces, Eva Högl (SPD). In her most recent report, she also sees the role of youth officers as central to a broad, public debate about war and peace, about the role and tasks of the Bundeswehr. Even the traffic light government, in the person of the Federal Minister of Education, has stated that school visits and discussions by youth officers are important. Unfortunately, when we asked what exactly the federal government is doing to support the youth officers and enable more visits to schools, the federal government has not provided any information.

Just a few weeks ago we had some youth officers as guests in the Bundestag. They spoke enthusiastically about their work with young people. The security policy discussions were well received by the students – across all federal states and types of schools. Nevertheless, youth officers also experience reservations and there are certainly differences as to where they are invited. Once they have been a guest at a school, in most cases they are invited regularly because head teachers, teachers and parents have also been convinced of the benefits of security policy education.

The work of youth officers needs more visibility and determined political backing. Together with the states, we must find ways to roll out cooperation projects between schools and youth officers across the board. Being objective and well-informed is part of democratic decision-making. Especially in the area of ​​the most central task of a state: ensuring the security of its own citizens.

To this end, teachers should be informed about the actual services offered by youth officers while they are still studying. This way, reservations and doubts can be addressed early on. The work of youth officers can also be addressed at parents’ evenings and objections from parents can be critically discussed. The aim should be that every pupil from the 9th grade onwards has the opportunity to discuss security policy with a youth officer once per school year.

This will certainly require an expansion of the personnel capacities of the youth officers. It is also essential to be educated in security policy in order to make an informed decision about whether or not to do military service, which will become more relevant again according to the Defense Minister’s concept.

Germany’s education system needs to be open to the offers of youth officers. In this way, we ensure that students learn to critically discuss and classify security and geopolitical contexts at an early age. And we also ensure that the work of the Bundeswehr is once again anchored where it should be: at the heart of our society.

Serap Güler and Thomas Jarzombek are CDU members of the German Bundestag.