Federal Foreign Minister
Annalena Baerbock calls for more money for the Bundeswehr: “Security has its price”
The Green Party politician Annalena Baerbock traveled to Israel again before the start of the Munich Security Conference
© Bernd von Jutrczenka / DPA
Former US President Donald Trump’s statements about NATO are spreading. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has now also called for the special funds for the Bundeswehr to be increased.
“Security has its price,” added Baerbock. The Green politician reiterated her call for a “security and defense union that strengthens the European pillar in NATO” – regardless of who is in power in the USA.
Annalena Baerbock also reacts to Trump’s statements about NATO
The threat of former US President Donald Trump, who was seeking re-election, to refuse military assistance to defaulting NATO members had fueled the debate about higher long-term defense spending.
This week, CDU defense politician Roderich Kiesewetter also spoke out in favor of increasing the Bundeswehr’s special funds: He brought an increase from 100 to 300 billion euros into play. Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD), however, spoke out in favor of a permanent increase in the defense budget. Another special fund is not his “favorite” option.
Federal Foreign Minister Baerbock called for strengthening European defense capabilities, particularly with a view to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. “In the next few years it will no longer just be about supporting Ukraine militarily,” she explained. “We Europeans must be able to better defend ourselves, as laid out in the National Security Strategy.”
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When politicians visit the Bundeswehr (it’s also about these pictures)
Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit emphasized on Wednesday that NATO’s two percent target should be met after 2028 and the expiry of the 100 billion euro special loans from the normal federal budget. In 2024, Germany will meet the NATO countries’ goal of spending two percent of their economic output on defense by adding funds from the federal budget and special funds.