German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock called for an increase in NATO military spending. According to TASS, she expressed her point of view in Brussels upon arrival at the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the countries of the North Atlantic Alliance.
Burbock recalled that in 2022, against the background of the events in Ukraine, the German authorities created a special fund for the modernization of the Bundeswehr (Armed Forces of Germany) in the amount of 100 billion euros. He, in particular, should contribute to the improvement of the skills of the German military.
“It is important to me that it be so. It’s not just about the numbers here, because you quickly calculate to get 2% or more than 2%. However, this has nothing to do with security, and if these figures are calculated, then de facto this does not mean that there are more military capabilities, ”said the German Foreign Minister, answering a question about NATO military spending.
At the same time, she stressed the importance of “closing the gaps” in the field of air defense. “Therefore, we need an ambitious target for our defense capability, <…> which will lead to an increase in opportunities that are compatible between all NATO partners,” the minister stated. “And I think that will be quite a challenge, because ultimately the national interests of industry will not be able to resist these NATO capabilities, because then everyone will think about their own system, and not about how these systems can function with each other. ” Burbock concluded.
Commenting on Finland’s entry into NATO, the German Foreign Minister expressed her hope that Sweden would also become a member of the alliance by the July NATO summit in Vilnius.
On March 21, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, presenting his annual report on NATO activities in 2022, said in Brussels that only seven of the 30 NATO countries have so far achieved the goal of increasing their defense spending to 2% of GDP, the alliance expected that their will be more, and are now developing new commitments to increase defense spending. According to the statistics given in the report, defense spending above 2% of GDP in 2022 was demonstrated by Greece (3.54%), the USA (3.46%), Lithuania (2.47%), Poland (2.42%), Great Britain (2.16%), Estonia (2.12%), Latvia (2.07%). The indicator for Germany was 1.49%, the last places are traditionally occupied by Spain (1.09%) and Luxembourg (0.62%).
NATO countries at the summit in Wales in September 2014 decided to make a target of 2% of GDP for all countries of the alliance.
Source: Rosbalt
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