In the past, the Bundeswehr has mostly done easyish jobs, even in distant places.

ECONOMIST: German defence

Rather than discussing the Bundeswehr's forays abroad, the argument has been over whether to use it at home.

ECONOMIST: Germany's armed forces: Abroad, by inches | The

If it accepts most of them, it will mean the biggest shake-up in the 44-year history of the Bundeswehr.

ECONOMIST: Germany

Yet with the Bundeswehr mostly engaged in humanitarian work and peacekeeping, Germans may see sending soldiers abroad as just a form of armed development aid.

ECONOMIST: Germany's armed forces: Abroad, by inches | The

"The insert has an exclusively defensive character and not the purpose of establishing a no-fly zone, but the de-escalation of the border, " the German army website, Bundeswehr, said.

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But beyond agreeing that the army should cost less, says Klaus Naumann, a military historian in Hamburg, there is no consensus, not even a serious debate, on what the Bundeswehr is for.

ECONOMIST: Germany��s army: No shooting please, we��re German | The

It is also undertaking a big reform of the Bundeswehr, which consists largely of shrinking the army from 250, 000 soldiers in 2010, when the reform began, to about 185, 000 by 2017, to save money.

ECONOMIST: Germany��s army

The Bundeswehr reinforces this message wherever it can.

ECONOMIST: Germany��s army