German minister: Military focus to shift to national defence, NATO

The years-long dominant focus on foreign missions should be ended and Germany should dedicate itself to putting national defence and the defence of its NATO allies at “equal ranking,” according to the draft of a policy paper titled, “Conception of the Bundeswehr,” seen by dpa.

The paper was drafted in reaction to new scenarios that include cyberattacks, a Defence Ministry spokesman said Friday in Berlin.

The paper is expected to be officially issued by von der Leyen in June.

The German military must be prepared to make “its contribution to national security provisions,” according to the paper.

In a note accompanying the paper, the defence of Germany and its military alliances was described as the “most demanding task with the highest accumulated demand.”

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, Germany concentrated its military efforts on foreign missions, for example those in Kosovo or Afghanistan.

Since the start of the Ukraine conflict and Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, tensions between NATO and Russia have increased.

A capability profile of the Bundeswehr is due to be created this year that describes its required resources. The planned reorientation means that the troops need to be vigorously built up, requiring many billions of euros.

Germany has earmarked 38.5 billion euros (46 billion dollars) for defence spending in the current year and 41.4 billion for 2019.

Source: dpa