The Hotel Maritim is only a few meters from the German Ministry of Defense and has for many years hosted the Rheinmetall Group’s Annual General Meeting (AGM). Rheinmetall is involved in armament deals with Turkey and Saudi Arabia, both of which play decisive roles in regional conflicts and wars.₁ At the AGM, decisions are made on financial issues as well as on amendments to the company’s bylaws.₂ The Dachverband Kritischer Aktionärinnen und Aktionäre [Association of Ethical Shareholders] participates every year in the AGM to ask critical questions, deliver speeches, and confront the management with the Group’s activities.₃ The Dachverband Kritischer Aktionärinnen und Aktionäre was founded in 1986 by several non-governmental organizations, e.g. environmental, human rights, and anti-apartheid groups, in order to influence problematic companies from the inside.₄ In the case of Rheinmetall, for example, the Dachverband asks questions about Rheinmetall’s shared production sites₅ and the gains being made from them.₆
 
This year’s AGM took place on May 28 and was once again under observation by various civil initiatives, such as urgewald, Legt den Leo an die Kette₇ and Ohne Rüstung Leben₈. A major focus of the protests is Rheinmetall’s ongoing strategic globalization of its defense sector.₉ The protesters furthermore demand that future exports serve civil (i.e. non-military) purposes only.₁₀