Go without resentment and grief

The outgoing inspector general says a fresh start needs fresh minds. He was greeted with particular friendliness by the soldiers when they visited the troops. His resignation had caused some irritation in the troops.

Dhe outgoing Inspector General of armed forces, Eberhard Zorn, has expressed that he is leaving office without resentment or grief. Zorn, who accompanied Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Wednesday on a visit to the Air Force in the Baltic States and an official visit to the Estonian government in Tallinn, said there: “I fully support the minister’s decision and I have no problem with it at all. We have set a lot of course, but when there is a new beginning, then it is sometimes quite good to do it with new heads.”

When asked what he would do in the future, Zorn said: “I’m going home.” He’s not aiming for a job in business. On the fringes of the visit, Zorn was greeted with particular friendliness by many of the soldiers stationed in Estonia as part of NATO air surveillance. The circumstances of the change at the top of the Bundeswehr had caused some dismay in the armed forces. It said Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) should have made it clear right away that the change was not due to personal misconduct, but solely for political reasons.

With regard to his successor, Lieutenant General Carsten Breuer, it was emphasized that he had a special connection to the Chancellery and to the Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Scholz had visited Breuer just a few days ago in his current area of ​​responsibility, in the territorial command in Berlin. The change of office is to be announced officially on Thursday by Defense Minister Pistorius.