Arms spending: According to Merz, the protection price range ought to develop with the financial system | EUROtoday

Friedrich Merz doesn’t assume a better share is sensible within the debate a few greater protection price range. Two p.c is only a “counting number,” mentioned the CDU chairman and the Union’s candidate for chancellor for the upcoming federal election on February twenty third on the Hamburg Business Journalists Club on Thursday. “We first have to reach a stable level of defense spending of two percent of gross domestic product. Based on today’s budget, that would be 30 to 40 billion euros more annually.” The defense budget last year was around 52 billion euros.

Last year, for the first time, Germany achieved the target of two percent of gross domestic product (GDP) for defense spending that was agreed upon years ago within NATO. The financial basis for this, however, is the special fund of 100 billion euros that the federal government set up after Russia’s attack on Ukraine, as part of what Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) called the “turning point”. This particular fund is anticipated for use up on the finish of 2027. It helps finance quite a few tasks for the Bundeswehr that have been deliberate lengthy earlier than 2022.

With 4.1 percent of GDP, Poland has the highest share of defense spending within NATO and wants to further increase this share to 4.7 percent this year. The USA spent around 3.4 percent of its GDP on armaments last year. US President Donald Trump, who will be in office again in the future, is currently demanding a five percent GDP share for the defense budget from NATO member states. Still Vice Chancellor and Minister of Economic Affairs Robert Habeck, the Green Party’s candidate for chancellor, believes a share of 3.5 percent makes sense for Germany.

The background to these debates is NATO’s assumption that Russia could be militarily in a position to openly threaten NATO and EU territory by the end of the decade. Cyber ​​attacks from Russia and other so-called “hybrid warfare” activities are now commonplace.

Merz did not respond to Trump’s demands in Hamburg, but said: “I don’t want to take part in these numbers games. Our economy must generate the necessary funds to strengthen the Bundeswehr, and for this we of course also need stronger economic growth. We need to increase the potential growth of our economy to two percent annually; it is currently at one percent.”

In order to obtain more weapons and equipment for the existing resources, the production of armaments must be organized much more on a European level. “The way we procure military equipment today is a huge waste of resources,” said Merz. “We need fewer different standards and significant scaling in quantities.”

This could be achieved if weapons and equipment for several European armies were developed, produced and marketed synchronously. Procurement also needs to be significantly more digitalized. This rationalization of the arms industry and procurement processes “must at least run parallel to an increase in resources for the defense budget”. Ultimately, higher defense spending alone is not effective.

Merz assumes that the Bundeswehr is at present lacking round 20,000 troopers. The military should instantly start increase personnel once more.