Germany’s cabinet has approved plans to send up to 1,200 troops to the Middle East as part of a multi-million euro mission to support the fight against Isis.
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A frigate would accompany French aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, now carrying out airstrikes against IS from the Mediterranean.
The mandate is for one year at a cost of €134 million (RM600.4 million) and can be extended in 2016.
However, there are some key questions that are certain to come up during Wednesday’s parliamentary debate.
A senior German lawmaker said last week that Germany would deploy the reconnaissance jets to support France in the fight against Islamic State militants in Syria.
German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier acknowledged it could be a protracted fight.
The mission is expected to receive the green light from the German Parliament, where the CDU-CSU and their Social Democratic (SPD) coalition partners have an overwhelming majority.
Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen sought to reassure voters, saying that Germany had not been drawn into war against its will but taken a conscious decision to get involved.
However, Mr Wieker said he did not believe German participation in current US-led air strikes against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) was necessary at the moment.
A German Defense Ministry spokesman told reporters Monday that Germany’s call for a broader alliance against Daesh and closer cooperation among the actors in the region did not involve the forces of the Assad regime.
“You can see we are standing together”, said Mr Kauder, whose job now is to crack his whip to maximise CDU support for the mission before Friday’s vote.
Germany has already promised to send up to 650 soldiers to Mali to aid France in its peace-keeping operation there as well as promising to send additional specialists to northern Iraq, who will join about 100 army trainers already on the ground.
“But let me be clear – there will be no future with Assad”, she stressed.
If Parliament votes in favor, this will be Germany’s largest military operation overseas.
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She has also ruled out coordination with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad whose government, with the help of Russian Federation and Iran, is also fighting against IS.
