War, climate and inflation: This is what Germans fear most

It wasn’t that long ago that Klaus Schweinsberg, head of the Center for Strategy and Higher Leadership, looked into questioning and bored faces at press conferences when he spoke about the possible danger of war. “It was never more than a side issue.”

For obvious reasons, since February 24 marks the anniversary of the start of Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine, this has now drastically changed. On Tuesday, the Allensbach opinion institute presented the 2023 Security Report together with the Center for Strategy and Higher Management in Berlin.

The security report has been measuring the well-being of the German population since 2011. Now the fear of war plays a role again. 80 percent of Germans are concerned about the war and the significant increase in inflation.

Russia is perceived by far as the greatest threat to peace in the world. 82 percent of West Germans and 73 percent of East Germans see it that way. China is the second greatest threat at 60 percent, while 52 percent of Germans see North Korea as the third greatest threat. In 2018, only 28 percent saw Russia as the greatest threat.

In contrast, in 2019 the USA was described by 61 percent of those surveyed as the greatest threat to world peace. “That was Donald Trump’s time,” explains Renate Köcher, Managing Director of the Allensbach Institute. “People don’t appreciate unpredictability. It almost doesn’t matter which government it comes from.” What is striking is that even today, only 26 percent of East Germans consider the USA to be a reliable partner.

The willingness to contribute to the defense of another NATO member state in accordance with the NATO alliance obligation in an emergency is also significantly less pronounced in the East than in the West. 48 percent of West Germans believe that Germany should take part in such a military operation. In the east of the country, only 30 percent of those surveyed thought it right to stand by a NATO partner in the event of an attack.

fear of inflation

Nationwide, a total of 45 percent of the population are in favor of Germany fulfilling its NATO obligations in such a case. 35 percent of those surveyed said it was better to “keep out of it”. One in five was undecided on this.

When it comes specifically to the defense of the Baltic states, approval is even lower: if Russia were to attack Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania, only 40 percent believe that Germany should intervene militarily, while 39 percent would prefer if Germany stayed out.

However, the majority of the population supports Germany’s NATO membership, says Köcher. “You want to be under the protective shield, but not be drawn into it, so society roughly reflects the political discussions in Berlin.”

The Germans feel most threatened by inflation, 67 percent are concerned. For 47 percent, military conflicts in which Germany could be directly involved represent a personal threat, for 46 percent it is a loss of income.

Since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression, however, the fear of a Russian use of nuclear weapons has decreased. In October 2022, 45 percent of Germans still rated this risk as high, but now it is only 34 percent.

To home page