Germany and Tunisia

There are moments during German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen's one-day visit to Tunis that make observers - and even the minister herself - smile. For example, when, during a press conference, Tunisian Defense Minister Farhat Horchani talked about his plan to secure the country's 500-kilometer-long border to Libya with a protective barrier of sand.

Horchani said, "No one intends to build a wall" - yet he seemed unaware that he had just invoked East German leader Walter Ulbricht's infamous promise, made shortly before he erected the Berlin Wall in 1961.

Or when Tunisian parliamentary delegates asked von der Leyen how to go about exercising effective oversight over the government and the defense ministry. The lawmakers may simply be inexperienced - and yet they are determined to make their young democracy flourish, and to protect it from its enemies.

Problem number one: terrorism

Many people have an interest in watching the Tunisian project fail. Terrorist groups, for one, who cross the desert border from Libya, infiltrate the country, and wait for an opportune moment to strike. And then there are the 3,000 to 6,000 young Tunisians who have gone in the opposite direction - to Libya - to join jihadis there, learn how to use weapons and explosives, and then return home.

Two of these "foreign fighters" attacked the Bardo Museum in the capital, Tunis, with assault rifles, killing 21 tourists and a guard. Two months later, on the beach of Sousse, 38 tourists were killed at the hands of a jihadi.

"The massacre demonstrated drastically what kind of enormous challenges your national security faces," von der Leyen told Tunisian representatives in a short speech in French. Afterwards, she discussed with the parliamentarians at length what Germany could do to help.

Securing the border to Libya is one area where Germany can help. It is sending military supplies: 700 optical devices, 3,000 helmets, five all-terrain trucks and repair supplies for ships and vehicles. On top of that, Germany plans to deliver technology with which the Tunisians could more effectively patrol the border. Exactly what kind of technology that may be is still unclear.

Democracy coaching

Von der Leyen's spontaneity then flared up, which always makes her press officer a little nervous. When the parliamentarians asked the question about overseeing the government, she promptly invited a delegation to visit Berlin, where they could join her - and also German Bundestag President Norbert Lammert - for an extended period. Lammert could then explain to them how it works when parliament monitors the executive branch, or if needed, gives it a rap on the knuckles.

The country that set off the Arab Spring needs a lot of help to develop stable institutions. The German defense minister has made it clear she would like to do more.