BEING ABLE TO FIGHT, SO WE DON'T HAVE TO - Why Our Freedom Depends on Collective Defense

  • A young officer’s unique perspective on the controversial topics of conscription and "combat readiness."

The Zeitenwende - a turning point in history - confronts our society with existential questions: How resilient must a democracy be to preserve freedom and peace in the long term? Young officer Wiebke Hönicke shatters common clichés and provides a realistic analysis of our defense capabilities. For her, "defensive resilience" goes far beyond mere military deterrence; it is a synergy of alliance loyalty, technological innovation, and, above all, a collective societal will for self-assertion.

Hönicke advocates for a new form of national service to strengthen social cohesion and state resilience. She interweaves poignant insights from her daily life as a female officer with high-level security policy debates. The result is a personal, reflective, and bold plea that empowers readers to form a well-founded opinion on the current debate surrounding national defense and resilience.

Contact Foreign Rights
  • Publisher: Rowohlt Taschenbuch
  • Release: 18.09.2026
  • ISBN: 978-3-499-02032-2
  • 192 Pages
  • Author: Wiebke Hönicke

Our covers may only be used free of charge for press, event and promotional purposes in connection with the title or author. In particular, it is not permitted to use the covers in connection with other products, goods or services. The covers may only be reproduced faithfully in their original, unaltered form and must not be edited.

Buchcover von BEING ABLE TO FIGHT, SO WE DON'T HAVE TO - Why Our Freedom Depends on Collective Defense: Warum unsere Freiheit gemeinsame Verteidigung braucht
Wiebke HönickeBEING ABLE TO FIGHT, SO WE DON'T HAVE TO - Why Our Freedom Depends on Collective Defense
Portrait von Wiebke Hönicke
© privat
Wiebke Hönicke

Wiebke Hönicke , born in 1993, joined the German Armed Forces as an officer candidate directly after graduating from high school in 2012. She studied Educational Sciences at the Bundeswehr University Munich and committed to 14 years of service. Today, she serves as a combat engineer officer and has completed two overseas deployments in Iraq. Hönicke is also the host of the podcast Buschfunk and was a co-initiator of #WirGegenExtremismus, a private initiative led by active and former members of the military.