German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius wants to increase defense spending

Minister of Defense German Boris Pistorius said in an interview for the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily that his country must significantly increase defense spending. – Thanks to the special fund (for the Bundeswehr – ed.), we now spend (equivalent to) 2 percent of GDP on defense. At 3 percent we are talking about just over €120 billion based on today's GDP. But we are still a long way from that, noted the Minister of Defense.

– If the funds from the special fund run out, we will need at least EUR 85 billion from 2028, which is EUR 30 billion more than today – he said. He emphasized that “this cannot be taken out of the budget, which amounts to PLN 480 billion.”

He called for a guarantee of long-term defense financing. According to Pistorius, you need to plan much wider than just legislative periods. – We need an action plan for the next 10 years. At the beginning of the term, we should not focus primarily on the next four years. At the very beginning, we must ask ourselves the question: where will we be in 10 years, taking into account the current threat situation – said the minister.

Asked what role Germany could play in possibly securing the demilitarized zone between Ukraine and RussiaIf there is a ceasefire between them, Pistorius said Germany is “NATO's largest partner in Europe.” “So it's clear that we will play a role and we will have to take responsibility,” he said.

According to the minister, “the key question is how to create such a level of security for Ukraine that Russia will not attack again in a few years.”

On Tuesday Pistorius met with Volodymyr Zelensky. The President of Ukraine appreciated Berlin's role in providing defense equipment.