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Copyright of Die Politische Meinung is the property of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Die Politische Meinung is the property of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Die Politische Meinung is the property of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Germany is planning to purchase 105 additional Leopard 2 A8 battle tanks as part of a program to modernize its armed forces. The tanks will be bought from Franco-German manufacturer KNDS for €2.9 billion ($3.1 billion) and will be delivered in tranches by 2030. Some of the tanks will be deployed to Lithuania to support NATO's efforts to defend against potential Russian aggression. The purchase will be approved through a commitment authorization, and it is not covered by Germany's debt-financed special fund for military spending. Additionally, German defense contractor Rheinmetall AG has received an order for artillery ammunition worth up to €8.5 billion to replenish stocks and support Ukraine's defense against Russia. [Extracted from the article]

Germany has announced plans to purchase an additional 20 Eurofighter aircraft as part of a military expansion program. Chancellor Olaf Scholz made the announcement at an aerospace fair in Berlin, stating that it is crucial for Germany to have a strong defense sector in light of recent events, such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The cost of the aircraft, which are a joint project between the UK, Germany, and Italy, is estimated to be around 4 billion euros. Germany aims to meet NATO's defense-spending goal of 2% of GDP in the long term, even after a special fund is exhausted in 2027. [Extracted from the article]

The article informs on Germany's post war pacifism. It mentions Russian President Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has convinced Germans to take security seriously, meanwhile budget presented to Germany's coalition cabinet was accompanied by a proposed law creating a special defence fund d to boost German defence spending from gross domestic product.

The editor, in this article, discusses about various international issues. In connection with the bill to pay the militia of the U.S. out of the Federal Treasury, under certain conditions, the charge was freely made that great pressure was put upon the U.S. Congressmen by the militia of their districts. That such organized lobbying on a great scale is active in connection with every pension bill, is notorious. Although British Prime Minster Winston Churchill's speech, introducing in the House supplementary naval estimates, will temporarily increase the military tension between Germany and England, the forces making for friendlier relations between those countries should not be overlooked The appointment of Baron Marschall von Bieberstein to the London Embassy, in the interest of a better understanding between England and Germany, has already had one good result. Sensible men in both countries are beginning to ask whether it is not time to put a stop to the output of inflammatory pamphlets and heated rejoinders that has done so much to disturb British and German statesmen sincerely desirous of preserving amicable relations.

Germany is facing a budget crisis after the country's top court ruled against the financing of special funds that are not part of the regular federal budget. As a result, the German government has imposed an emergency spending freeze and is working to understand the broader implications of the ruling. The freeze applies to all federal ministries, except for certain bodies like the two houses of parliament and the Constitutional Court. The ruling has raised doubts about Germany's financing plans, including projects related to the pandemic, greening manufacturing, and expanding solar power. The decision is likely to impact other special funds as well. Finance Minister Christian Lindner may have to account for at least €30 billion of new debt in a revised 2023 federal budget, which would require dropping the plan to restore constitutional rules limiting new borrowing. The ruling has caused disagreements within the ruling alliance, with the Social Democrats committed to finding the money to address the budget shortfall without making cuts to social benefits. Germany has numerous off-budget funds, but the military spending fund is not expected to be affected. Budget lawmakers are working to finalize next year's federal budget despite the court ruling. [Extracted from the article]

Germany is facing a budget crisis after the Finance Ministry implemented an emergency spending freeze in response to a recent ruling by the country's top court. The ruling questions the financing of special funds that are not part of the regular federal budget, potentially affecting hundreds of billions of euros. As a result, the Finance Ministry has frozen new spending authorizations for this year while it assesses the broader implications. Existing liabilities will still be honored, but new commitments can only be unblocked in exceptional cases. The ruling may also impact other special funds, such as those aimed at easing the burden of high energy prices. Finance Minister Christian Lindner may need to account for at least €30 billion of new debt in a revised 2023 federal budget, potentially forcing him to abandon plans to restore constitutional rules limiting new borrowing. Germany has 29 off-budget funds worth around €870 billion, with military spending not expected to be affected. Budget lawmakers are currently finalizing next year's federal budget and will discuss the court ruling later this week. [Extracted from the article]

Germany's governing coalition, led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, has agreed to double its military aid to Ukraine next year to €8 billion ($8.6 billion). If approved by the parliament, this increase would exceed the 2% of GDP defense spending target set by NATO. The increase in aid was agreed upon by lawmakers from Scholz's Social Democrats, the Free Democrats, and the Green party during negotiations over the proposed 2024 federal budget. Germany has already provided over €17 billion in military aid to Ukraine, making it the country's largest military backer in Europe. [Extracted from the article]

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has promised that Germany will continue to expand its military capabilities even after a €100 billion ($107 billion) special fund for defense spending is exhausted. This expansion is part of Germany's goal to become the "central hub" of NATO in Europe. Scholz stated that the fund will likely be allocated by the end of this year, allowing Germany to meet NATO's defense spending goal of at least 2% of GDP for the first time in over three decades. The funds have been used to procure various military equipment, including fighter jets, air-defense systems, and helicopters. Scholz emphasized the importance of a long-term change in Germany's defense policy due to Russia's aggression and highlighted Germany's commitment to defense projects with France. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg praised Germany's leadership and responsibility in meeting the 2% spending goal. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the state of strategic thinking and debate among the political class in Germany as compared to the challenges it is facing. Topics discussed include the three parties that have together governed the country for eight of the last twelve years including Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel led Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union, and the Social Democrats, and defense spending of the country set to grow from EUR 37 billion to EUR 45 billion by the year 2021.

This podcast is produced by the Big Take Podcast team: Supervising Producer: Vicki Vergolina, Senior Producer: Kathryn Fink, Producers: Mo Barrow, Rebecca Chaisson, Michael Falero and Federica Romaniello, Associate Producers: Sam Gebauer and Zaynab Siddiqui. (Bloomberg) -- Listen to The Big Take podcast on iHeart, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Terminal. [Extracted from the article]

The extra cash would be on top of the debt-financed special fund worth €100 billion Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced shortly after the Russian invasion to finance the rebuilding of Germany's military in coming years. Scholz does not plan to intervene and will leave the budget negotiations to his ministers, Hebestreit said at the regular government news conference in Berlin. Scholz's coalition government plans to wrap up the budget negotiations in the next two weeks so that cabinet can approve the draft in mid-March and send it to parliament. [Extracted from the article]

The extra cash would be on top of the debt-financed special fund worth €100 billion Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced shortly after the Russian invasion to finance the rebuilding of Germany's military in coming years. (Bloomberg) -- Germany is poised to increase its defense budget by as much as €10 billion ($10.7 billion) next year to help fund additional spending needs triggered by Russia's war on Ukraine, according to people familiar with the plans. At the time, Scholz said the fund would enable Germany to both reverse years of neglect and comply with a NATO guideline of spending 2% of economic output on defense. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Germany will fail to meet a NATO guideline of spending 2% of gross domestic product on its military next year and again from 2026 onwards, according to an analysis quoted in local media on Monday. Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht recently revised the target to 2% of GDP "on average in the next five years", potentially angering Germany's allies who have long complained the government in Berlin isn't pulling its weight militarily. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Germany's ruling coalition is planning to more than double net federal borrowing next year to help ease the impact of the energy crisis and steer Europe's largest economy through an expected recession. Germany's Annual Borrowing Set to Hit €45 Billion Next Year The 2023 budget plan, which will still see the restoration of a constitutional limit on new debt, is still under negotiation within the government and the borrowing target could change before it's finalized, the people said. [Extracted from the article]

Lindner, who is the leader of the business-friendly Free Democrats and casts himself as a fiscal hawk, has insisted that next year's finance plan will adhere to the debt brake, which limits new federal borrowing to 0.35% of gross domestic product. (Bloomberg) -- Germany's ruling coalition is planning to more than double net federal borrowing next year to help ease the impact of the energy crisis. Finance Minister Christian Lindner has pledged to restore the borrowing cap -- known as the debt brake -- next year for the first time since 2020 when it was suspended to help fund generous spending to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. [Extracted from the article]

At the same time, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's ruling coalition has agreed to establish two special funds that are not part of the regular budget to address the energy crisis and enable a huge increase in military spending. Finance Minister Christian Lindner has pledged to restore the borrowing cap -- known as the debt brake -- next year for the first time since it was suspended to help fund generous spending to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. (Bloomberg) -- Germany's ruling coalition is planning to more than double net federal borrowing next year while remaining within a constitutional limit on new debt. [Extracted from the article]

Yet while Annalena Baerbock, the former Green party leader who is now foreign minister, has traveled to Ukraine, Scholz still hasn't. (Bloomberg) -- Chancellor Olaf Scholz signature policy to boost Germany's military prowess is struggling to get off the ground. [Extracted from the article]

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's cabinet approved additional borrowing of 39.2 billion euros ($41.6 billion) this year to bolster the economy against fallout from the war in Ukraine. Overall net new borrowing could therefore exceed 138.9 billion euros at the end of this year, depending how much debt from the 100 billion euros of the special fund will be issued in 2022. [Extracted from the article]

Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the German government has broken long-standing fiscal taboos and unleashed an unprecedented borrowing binge with net new debt of 130 billion euros in 2020 and a record 215 billion euros in 2021. (Bloomberg) -- Germany will increase borrowing plans by nearly 40 billion euros ($43 billion) this year to cushion the effect of the war in Ukraine, taking the total for net new debt to almost 140 billion euros, according to three people familiar with the matter. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has also announced a special off-budget fund worth 100 billion euros to pay for a huge increase in military spending and meet the NATO alliance's military spending goal of 2% of economic output per year. [Extracted from the article]

Reports on Germany's proposed military spending plan which is raising questions about the country's ability to meet requirements for reshaping its armed forces and turning them into a tool that can be used for European military and crisis management actions. Funding problems; Problems encountered by the defense plan.

The article discusses the plan of Germany to increase its military spending from 2016 to 2030, focusing on its increased militarist foreign policy and deployment of troops to North Africa and Syria. Topics include the pledge of Germam Foreign Minister ursula von der Leyen for a greater role in international crisis fighting, the increased military spending of France, Great Britain, and Germany, and its involvement in the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.

(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- Three decades ago, the German military boasted about 500,000 soldiers, more than 2,000 battle tanks, and almost 1,000 fighter jets - respectable numbers to fulfill its defensive obligations should the Cold War suddenly turn hot. New Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht, a Social Democrat with no military experience and little national profile, has pushed back against the notion that Germany would be swiftly overrun in its current state. [Extracted from the article]