The trip of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) to the new power holders in Syria has posed a logistical challenge for the German military and incurred high costs. According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, a total of five aircraft were used for the trip.
Initially, a government Airbus A319 flew to Cyprus, followed by a military transport plane A400M to Syria, and another A400M was held in reserve in case of problems. Additionally, a C130J military transport plane was used to transport special forces, flying from France to Germany, then to Syria, and back, with a total of around 17 flight hours accounted for.
In Bundeswehr circles, a total of 24 individual flights for the trip’s execution were discussed, along with a personnel deployment of over 100 personnel, due to the still highly evaluated security risk in Syria. Typically, the relevant ministry works together with security authorities and the German military to create a requirements list for such a visit. The A400M is estimated to have cost around 50,000 euros per flight hour, while the A319, which waited in Cyprus and brought the delegation back to Germany, costs around 30,000 euros per flight hour. A round-trip flight to Cyprus takes around eight hours in total.
The Foreign Office justified the expenditure as a “highly important diplomatic trip to a decisive moment in the further development of Syria.” Baerbock traveled to Damascus on January 3 with her French counterpart, Jean-Noel Barrot. The visit was overshadowed by the fact that rebel leader Ahmed al-Scharaa did not greet Baerbock with a handshake, while Barrot was already greeted in this manner. According to SZ information, another German government official is planning a trip to Syria soon, with a significantly lower expenditure expected.
The Defense Ministry stated in response to the newspaper’s inquiry that the exact costs of Baerbock’s trip cannot be provided, as costs for flights or flight hours cannot be considered in a blanket manner, separate from the respective daily operational framework, including personnel deployment, flight preparation, airfield and flight safety fees, consumed fuels, and maintenance and repair shares.
Officially, the use of five aircraft is also not confirmed. “We understand that we cannot provide details on the deployed capabilities and personnel, as well as the flight operations of military aircraft, due to military security and operational security reasons” a spokesperson said.