Unified command and control
Moving through Germany faster: Simplified approval procedures for military convoys
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On 22 July 2025, the Bundeswehr and the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania signed an administrative agreement on registration of military transports by road. The agreement is designed to efficiently regulate military road transports. It is an important element in collective defence and Germany’s role as a hub.
Military deployments and transports are being simplified and accelerated. An agreement to that effect was signed with Autobahn GmbH in late July. Agreements have also been signed with various federal states.
Bundeswehr/Marco DorowRegional Territorial Command Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, which entered into the administrative agreement with the State Office for Road Construction and Transport, is particularly affected by military transports because main routes to and from the Baltic Sea ports and to the Polish border pass through the state. In an Article 5 contingency, these routes would be important for deploying NATO forces towards the Baltic and NATO’s eastern flank. The agreement in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is intended to make fewer requests by the Bundeswehr and friendly armed forces subject to approval – for faster transports and shorter lead times in the event of a crisis.
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is not the first federal state to facilitate military transports. The agreement follows comparable agreements with other federal states such as Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, Bremen, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse and Saxony-Anhalt. As of 24 November, such an agreement also applies in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The agreements at state level encompass the roads that are relevant to military transports and for which the federal states are responsible – that means federal, state und district roads – and streamline registration procedures for military movements. Many road transports now only require notification to be given and no longer specific approval. This way, the use of the road network is simplified, taking into account the interests of both military and civilian stakeholders. The structural conditions of the road network and the impact on civilian traffic, for example during rush hours, are also taken into consideration.
In the other federal states, signing the new agreements has also greatly simplified the procedures. For instance, in Schleswig-Holstein, approximately 100 roads in the road network were identified for which onerous individual reviews and differentiated approval steps were simplified through a blanket approval.
The simplified procedures also apply to the armed forces of friendly nations, in this case US combat vehicles during deployment to the Quadriga 2024 large-scale exercise
Bundeswehr/Sven RiedelOn 30 June 2025, the Bundeswehr and the Autobahn GmbH federally owned motorway company also signed an administrative agreement on military transports. This facilitates large-capacity and heavy transports, as well as Bundeswehr formations travelling on the motorways, to the same degree. Autobahn GmbH bears nationwide responsibility for the motorway network.
The agreements do not apply exclusively to the Bundeswehr. Businesses that have been commissioned to act on behalf of the Bundeswehr, as well as friendly forces – from European Union and NATO countries – who are in transit on the German road network within the framework of host nation support, also benefit from the simplified regulations.
The aim is for Germany to run smoothly as a hub to allow implementation of the Operational Plan for Germany. After all, in the event of an Alliance contingency, transit and host nation support, i.e. providing supplies and support to Allied forces moving through the country, are among Germany’s key commitments to NATO. Within a span of six months, up to 800,000 military personnel with up to 200,000 vehicles could then move through Germany and receive the necessary supplies here. The agreements made are therefore an important step to make Germany more resilient and defence-ready.
On 18 August 2025, Regional Territorial Command Saxony-Anhalt and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Digital Affairs of Saxony-Anhalt signed an agreement to improve the mobility of military transports on the federal state’s roads. This agreement will eliminate time-consuming case-by-case reviews and approvals from now on.
With this agreement, we have achieved a noticeable improvement in our military response time in the event of a crisis, without unduly burdening Saxony-Anhalt or its municipalities. The aim is always to strengthen our defence capability.
On 21 August 2025, Regional Territorial Command Hesse, the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Energy, Transport, Housing and Rural Areas and the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Infrastructure, Environmental Protection and Services also signed an agreement on efficient regulation of military transports on the state’s roads. In future, this “basic military route network agreement” (Militärstraßengrundnetzvereinbarung) is to simplify registration procedures for military movements such that road transports only require notification to be given and no longer specific approval.
By signing this agreement, we are laying the foundation for even closer and less bureaucratic cooperation between the Bundeswehr and the state of Hesse.
