‘Historical failure’: Germany to hike military spending after years of underfunding

The German government on Thursday pledged to boost military spending after defence chiefs laid bare the “extremely limited” resources of Europe’s biggest economy’s to help pushback against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Finance Minister Christian Lindner said it was time for a “turning point” in German defence investment, long a target of criticism by Western allies.

“I worry that we have neglected the armed forces so much in the past that it can’t completely fulfil its duties,” he told public television.  

“Falling defence spending no longer fits with the times.”

Former defence minister under Angela Merkel, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, had earlier admitted Berlin was guilty of “historical failure” in not bolstering itself militarily.

She said Germany had forgotten lessons from the past that “negotiation always comes first, but we have to be militarily strong enough to make non-negotiation not an option for the other side”.

“I’m so angry at ourselves for our historical failure. After Georgia, Crimea, and Donbas, we have not prepared anything that would have really deterred Putin,” said Kramp-Karrenbauer, referring to incursions carried out by Russia while Merkel was in power.