German militarization wish list to cost nearly €400bn – Politico

Berlin plans a rearmament to make the Bundeswehr “the strongest conventional army in Europe,” internal documents show

Germany is preparing a €377 billion ($440 billion) expansion of its armed forces, Politico reported on Monday, citing internal government documents. The move is part of a broader militarization drive across the EU.

The files reportedly detail a plan for new weapons and equipment projects across the Bundeswehr’s land, air, naval, space, and cyber forces. The long-term rearmament effort is expected to stretch beyond the 2026 budget.

The plan lists about 320 new projects, with roughly half of the funds set to go to German arms producers. Rheinmetall will supply tanks, air-defense systems, and ammunition worth tens of billions of euros, while Diehl Defence is expected to provide its IRIS-T missiles.

The package covers spending on satellites, drones, and naval programs. Around €14 billion is allocated for space projects, including a low-orbit network for military communications, while other funds would go to new reconnaissance and patrol systems. It also includes US-made weapons such as F-35 fighter jets and Tomahawk cruise missiles.

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Major contracts will still require approval from the parliamentary budget committee once they are ready for implementation, Politico wrote.

Berlin has changed its budget rules to permit long-term defense spending beyond the €100-billion fund created after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz has vowed to turn the Bundeswehr into the “strongest conventional army in Europe,” in a speech delivered shortly after the world marked the 80th anniversary of the fall of the Third Reich in May. German officials have set 2029 as the deadline for the Bundeswehr to be “war-ready,” citing alleged Russia threat. Moscow dismissed the claim as “nonsense” aimed at justifying higher Western military budgets.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused Merz of seeking to transform Germany back into “the main military machine of Europe,” saying Berlin’s policies prove its “direct involvement” in the proxy war against Russia. He also warned that the wider EU was sliding into what he described as a “Fourth Reich.” 

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Germany has become Ukraine’s second-largest arms supplier after the US. It sent the Leopard tanks used in Kiev’s failed incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region.

The buildup comes as Germany faces what economists have called a “dramatic” decline, with stagnating growth and weakening industry.