The term State of Defence (in German: Verteidigungsfall or V-Fall) refers to the legal status of the Federal Republic of Germany if it is "under attack by armed force or imminently threatened with such an attack"[1]. This special status, which was created by a constitutional amendment in 1968, gives the Federal Government extraordinary powers in the case of war. It is laid down in the articles 115a to 115l (Title Xa) of the German Constitution. As of December 2011, Germany has never been in the State of Defence.
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According to article 115a of the German Constitution, the State of Defence shall be declared if "the federal territory [of the Federal Republic of Germany] is under attack by armed force or imminently threatened with such an attack".
The normal procedure is that, upon request of the Federal Government, the Bundestag determines that the conditions of the State of Defence exist. That means that the Bundestag does not actually declare the State of Defence; instead, it just decides whether it exists or not. (If e.g. a foreign army invaded Germany, the Bundestag would determine that this action is an "attack by armed force" as mentioned in article 115a and that consequently Germany is in the State of Defence.) This determination by the Bundestag requires a two-third majority of the votes of those members of parliament present at that time (at least 50% of the MPs have to be present to reach a quorum[2]). It also has to be approved by the Bundesrat with an absolute (i.e. more than 50%) majority of all of its members (not only of those who are present - as the Bundesrat has 69 members, at least 35 votes would be required).
If the Bundestag or the Bundesrat are not able to convene in time or not able to reach a quorum, the Joint Committee decides on their behalf.
If Germany is under attack by armed force and neither the Bundestag and the Bundesrat nor the Joint Committee are able to determine the State of Defence immediately, "the determination shall be deemed to have been made and promulgated at the time the attack began". (If, for example, an invasion started on January 4 at 4:17 a.m., Germany would be in the State of Defence from January 4, 4:17 a.m. on, and the government could react without having to wait for the consent of the parliament.)
According to article 115b GG, the Federal Chancellor becomes Commander-in-chief of the armed forces. (Normally, the Minister of Defence holds this post.)
According to article 115c GG, the federation has extended legislative powers:
Additionally, the normal legislative procedure is replaced by a faster one:
The Joint Committee consists of members of the Bundestag and members of the Bundesrat. Two thirds of the committee members are provided by the Bundestag and one third are provided by the Bundesrat. The committee members of the Bundestag are designated by the Bundestag "in proportion to the relative strength of the various parliamentary groups". Every state is represented by a Bundesrat member. The committee members of the Bundestag must not be members of the government, the committee members of the Bundesrat are "not bound by instructions". Today, the Joint Committee consists of 16 members of the Bundesrat (one for each state), and 32 members of the Bundestag (twice the number of Bundesrat members), giving it a total number of 48 members. The members of the Joint Committee and their deputies are already designated during peacetime[4].
The Joint Committee takes over the tasks of both the Bundestag and the Bundesrat if, during a state of defence, it determines, with a two-thirds majority of its vote, that either the Bundestag or the Bundesrat are not able to convene in time or are not able to reach a quorum. This majority must include at least a majority of all committee members (today at least 25 members). This rule is important when not all committee members are available: If e.g. only 30 committee members could be reached, 20 votes would be a two-thirds majority; however, at least 25 votes would be required for the determination. If the Joint Committee, including the official deputies (today 30 Bundestag members and 16 Bundesrat members), is not able to reach full strength (48 members), the Bundestag (in case of missing or dead Bundestag committee members) and/or the state governments (in case of missing or dead Bundesrat committee members) designate new committee members[5].
The Joint Committee takes over any task normally dealt by the Bundestag and/or the Bundesrat. All decisions which would normally be made by the either the Bundestag, or the Bundesrat, or both of them, is made by the entire Joint Committee. However, there are some limitations to the power of the Joint Committee (when compared to Bundestag and Bundesrat):
The Joint Committee is based on the articles 53a (Composition - Rules of procedure) and 115e (Joint Committee) of the constitution, as well as on own rules of procedure.
According to article 115f, paragraph (1), clause 1 GG, the Federal Government may employ the Federal Border Guard throughout the federal territory, i.e. everywhere in Germany.
When the Emergency Acts were passed, the Federal Border Guard was a paramilitary police force responsible only for the protection of West Germany's external land and sea borders. Over the decades, however, the role of the Federal Border Guard, and even its name, changed - today the Federal Police is also responsible for the security of the railway network, provides airport security and protects federal buildings. But as the entire title Xa was never changed after it had been passed in 1968, the term Federal Border Guard is still used in the constitution.
According to article 115f, paragraph (1), clause 2 GG, the Federal Government may issue instructions to state governments and state authorities. (Normally, state governments act on their own and state authorities receive their orders only from the state government).
According to article 115h GG, electoral terms that would expire during the state of defence are extended:
In 2011 the German Conscription Act was changed to abolish peacetime conscription. Effective from July 1 conscripts may only be drafted during the state of defence.[6]
According to article 115l GG, the state of defence ends when it is declared terminated by the Bundestag. The Bundestag declares the state of defence to be terminated, if the conditions for determining it no longer exist, e.g. after a peace treaty has been signed.
Title Xa of the German Constitution (English)