BERLIN — Germany is increasing defense spending and rearming in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and pressure from the U.S. for Europe to assume greater defense responsibilities. The country’s defense budget is projected to rise by nearly 80% by 2029, part of a strategic shift initiated after Moscow’s 2022 invasion.
Three days after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz addressed the Bundestag, declaring the event a “zeitenwende,” or turning point, and announced a special 100 billion euro fund for military modernization. Friedrich Merz, who became chancellor in May 2024, has accelerated this shift, pushing parliament to exempt defense spending from Germany’s constitutional debt brake. In February 2025, Merz said, “My absolute priority will be to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible so that, step by step, we can really achieve independence from the USA.” He also posted, “we must never confuse aggressor and victim in this terrible war,” following a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Merz retained Boris Pistorius, a Social Democrat appointed defense minister in 2023, who has overseen a 23% increase in military enlistments compared to the previous year. Pistorius said: “I grew up in the Cold War. And since February 2022, we all experience in-- in Germany and in Europe that the war is back. We never expected that. And we were so hopeful that it would never happen again. But it does. And we have to do everything to be able to deter and defend.” He added, “Germany is third biggest-- economy in the world and the biggest one in Europe, of course. So everybody in Europe expects us to be the strongest ally in NATO in Europe.”
Pistorius warned that Vladimir Putin is rapidly rebuilding Russia’s military and could pose a direct threat to the West by the end of the decade. “There is not only the war against Ukraine. This is a war against rule-based international order. And-- at the same time, he does not stop stressing what he's really longing for f-- like, a Renaissance of the Soviet empire. He wants to be the dominant power in Europe. And he wants to be the third-- of three world powers like China and the U.S. This is what he is-- what he is heading for.” He added, “We should do everything to be that in 2029. This is our objective. This is still a way to go.”
Germany’s rearmament includes new investments in defense technology. The Bundeswehr awarded a 25 million euro contract to drone manufacturer Quantum Systems to produce up to 750 intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance drones. According to co-CEO Sven Kruck, “We have now more than 1,500 at the battlefront day by day in use.” He said, “In use in Ukraine day by day, night by night.” He added, “Drones. Drones.” Kruck also stated, “And this actually was our moment where everybody has seen Quantum Systems and-- especially ISR drones can make a difference.” Despite this, Kruck stated that Germany is not investing enough in cutting-edge defense technologies.