Germany increases defense and security spending/Getty Images
< strong _ngcontent-sc124="">The Russian attack on Ukraine shook the world and changed the German approach to the issue of security and the army. It has already been called the most dramatic turn in German defense and security history since World War II.
30 years back Germany boasted a powerful military force. Then the country of Europe had about 500 thousand soldiers, more than 2 thousand battle tanks, and almost 1,000 fighters.
Germany increases defense and security spending
With the collapse of the USSR and the opening of the Iron Curtain Germany has begun cutting back on defense spending by eliminating conscription, reducing the amount of equipment and reconfiguring its troops for a new type of mission – we are talking about rapid interventions abroad with the deployment of special forces.
In the new world order, trade, diplomacy and economic assistance could be the basis of security, while tanks, military aircraft, etc. have become an expensive anachronism. However, Russia's attack on Ukraine radically changed the situation. In Germany, they understood a few things:
- less than half of the fleet of Leopard 2 tanks for 289 units is in working order;
- by some estimates, The German military has enough ammunition to last about three days of fighting.
The army I have the honor to lead is more or less naked. This is not good. I'm furious,” Lieutenant General Alfons Mays said shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Two days after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held emergency meetings in Berlin with his closest aides. These events culminated in the most dramatic turn in German defense and security policy since the end of World War II.
In particular, Germany plans to rearm its armed forces with a cash injection of 100 billion euros ($110 billion) and will spend at least 2% of its GDP on defense in the coming years.
Interestingly, this is exactly the target identified in NATO, which before the war in Ukraine was recognized with vague assurances or openly ridiculed by German politicians.
