German Defense Minister Presents Bundeswehr Sexual Misconduct Study

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius presented the results of a study on sexual misconduct in the Bundeswehr to the Bundestag defense committee. The research, conducted by the Military History and Social Sciences Center, surveyed approximately 45,000 female and male soldiers.

According to the study, 40 percent of female soldiers reported experiencing at least one incident of sexual misconduct during their service in the past 12 months. Verbal sexual harassment was reported by 38 percent of women, while 9 percent reported physical sexual assault.

“My little darling! One more remark like that – broken jaw!”

Two percent of female soldiers reported sexual violence, and 7 percent said images of them were taken without consent or altered using artificial intelligence. Pistorius personally presented the hard facts in what was described as an act of forward defense.

The study also examined why victims do not report incidents. Between 36 and 61 percent of those who did not report said they feared negative personal consequences, while 44 to 59 percent did not believe their complaint would lead to an effective result.

Researchers cited the military hierarchy, the work environment, and distrust in existing complaint mechanisms as reasons for silence. Pistorius noted that verbal harassment was perceived by 72 percent of female soldiers over their entire service period, compared to 31 percent of men.

Units with more female soldiers showed better figures, while the situation was disproportionately worse on navy ships. The minister warned the study could discourage young women from applying and worsen the Bundeswehr's recruitment problem.