Germany’s Defense Budget Disappoints Despite Promises of Overhaul

Two-and-a-half years after Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to overhaul Germany’s military, his government’s proposed budget for 2025 calls for only a modest increase in defense spending. The draft budget was deeply disappointing to those looking for signs that Germany would live up to Mr. Scholz’s promise of a “Zeitenwende,” defined by the chancellor himself as an “epochal tectonic shift” in strategy, which he announced with great fanfare in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

With the war in Ukraine grinding on, Russia continuing to saber-rattle, and potential political shifts globally, Germany has faced mounting pressure from its allies to take on a more robust security role. However, the proposed budget fell short of expectations, raising concerns about the government’s commitment.

Germany’s defense minister, Boris Pistorius, had requested a significant increase in the defense budget for 2025, but was only granted a fraction of the amount. This shortfall has amplified doubts about whether the current administration has the determination or political support to overcome Germany’s historical reluctance to play a leading military role post-World War II.

The budget proposal also includes a plan to reduce military aid to Ukraine by half in 2025, a decision that has drawn criticism. Germany’s finance minister, Christian Lindner, suggested that Ukraine could rely on a $50 billion fund supported by frozen Russian assets, agreed upon by the Group of 7 nations recently.

However, critics argue that the modest increase in military spending falls short of meeting Germany’s commitments to NATO and falls far from achieving the promised epochal shift in military strategy.