The surprising Darth Vader Stunt of the German Military triggers a counter reaction from the Nazis

The decision of the Bundeswehr to invite Darth Vader at the start of her new space defense program went backwards after critics pointed out unpleasant parallels to the Nazi past.

At the opening ceremony of the new headquarters of the German space command, General Major Michael Traut gave his speech, flanked by storm troops and imperial officers from Star Wars.

German officials, who are not known for their sense of humor, were sharply criticized, with critics reminding the military that the evil galactic empire in Star Wars was partly inspired by the country's Nazi history.

Germany's military "Apparently no problem" with the fact that the galactic empire in the fictional universe committed a genocide, or that some of the characters who took part in the ceremony, "remind you of that of the Wehrmacht," commented the technician website Golem.

The unusual decision to include film figures in the normally serious state affairs triggered confused reactions in other parts of German media.

"The Star Wars alley would have worked for well-known figures from the rebellion. In the case of the Bundeswehr, it was decided to use its fascist colleagues," said the Berlin Courier.

On social media, a user asked: "Who will tell you that the empire was not on the good side?"

Others were impressed by the carefree approach to the ceremony.

A comment on YouTube said that “everyone who is connected to the space command seems to be a massive nerd. I love it.”

The military then pointed out that the Star Wars characters were invited to advertise for a good cause. They also collected donations for a charity that helps military families with disabled children.

Around 40 million euros (£ 35.1 million) were spent on the new headquarters outside of Düsseldorf, which, according to the army, houses state -of -the -art equipment for defending German strategic interests in space.

"Modern societies are strongly dependent on space -based services," said Major General Traut at the event.

"The safe and sustainable use of space is just as much part of the critical infrastructure as the power and water supply. Our mission is to protect this infrastructure and, if necessary, to defend it," he added.

Germany announced the establishment of his space command two years ago, in the same year in which the UK set up a similar unit under the command of the RAF.