German defense minister insists on increasing defense budget
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has expressed his insistence in the ongoing budget negotiations to increase the budget allocated to his ministry by several billion Euros.
Pistorius said that a credible defense needed a sustainable and reliable budget.
Speaking at the seventy-fourth edition of the Overseas Conference in Hamburg, Pistorius said on Monday, “That’s why it’s a constant thing for me that a permanent investment of at least 2% of our national economic output in defense capabilities at the national and NATO levels is inevitable”.
Pistorius added, “Our common security is expensive, but I am convinced that this money will be well invested because in Germany we know the value of the promise of common security”.
Pistorius added that Russia has been and will continue to be the greatest threat to security and peace in the Euro-Atlantic region, saying, “That is why our mission is to help Ukraine to victory”.
Referring to Russia’s war on Ukraine, Pistorius said, “We cannot stand on the sidelines and wait to see what happens”.
The German Defense Minister warned against leniency in the use of expressions and said that what is happening isn’t a conflict between two countries but an imperialist war of aggression contrary to international law aimed only at depriving Ukraine of its territorial sovereignty, depriving the people of their freedom and annexing sovereign territory.
Pistorius is concerned about the strength of the German armed forces, as he said, “this is related to basic military service or even the introduction of compulsory public service, noting that he has now ordered his ministry to prepare various open-ended options in this regard and Pistorius will announce a concrete proposal in the coming weeks”.
