Ministers of Defense of the countries NATO they agreed on Thursday in Brussels to launch the biggest weapons program since Cold War and to drastically increase deterrence and defense capabilities in the coming years.
Long-range weapon systems, defense against air attacks and mobile ground units have priority, and the agreement will be on the agenda of the NATO summit, which will be held in The Hague at the end of June, reports dpa.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said this is a "historic moment" for the North Atlantic military alliance.
The program includes new military capability goals for each NATO member individually, and each of the 32 countries will receive a list of precisely defined obligations for joint contribution to deterrence and defense capabilities.
Those requests are based on the assessment of intelligence officials that, despite the exhausting war in Ukraine, Russia could be ready for war against one of the NATO members in a few years.
Bundeswehr to be supplemented with around 60.000 active soldiers
Specific goals are strictly confidential, and sources state that the implementation of the program leads to an increase in the alliance's military capability by about 30 percent.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that in order to meet the new guidelines, the Bundeswehr must be replenished with around 60.000 active soldiers.
It is expected that a decision will be adopted in The Hague that all NATO members must allocate five percent of the gross domestic product for the army in the coming period, but fulfilling this obligation will be a big challenge for many countries, because some have failed to fulfill even their current obligations.
Trump's request
Until now, members have had the obligation to invest at least two percent of gross domestic product in defense, and from the summit in The Hague, this will increase to 3,5 percent, plus 1,5 percent for related investments, such as logistics and infrastructure.
Allocation of five percent of GDP for the election is the request of US President Donald Trump.
In order to meet the new goals, Germany needs to increase defense expenditures at the rate of 0,2 percent of GDP per year in the next five to seven years.
In that case, from last year's 2,1 to the targeted 3,5 percent will reach 2032, and Chancellor Friedrich Mertz stated that each percentage point of spending more on defense means an additional 45 billion euros.
