Germany says up to €400 billion needed to modernize army

An additional €350-400 billion is needed to modernize the German Armed Forces, Armin Papperger, head of the German defense concern Rheinmetall, said on November 29.

"We had €100 billion in special funds, so we are short of another €250-300 billion. These amounts are necessary for the industry to have sufficient security to invest in new plants," he told Der Spiegel.

He noted that without additional aid for important raw materials such as explosives, Rheinmetall's production capacity could decline over the next year and a half.

At the same time, Papperger insists that additional military aid should be sent to Ukraine before Germany holds early parliamentary elections and forms a new government in February. He noted that the Federal Republic of Germany sent €8bn annually to Kiev, but now, in his opinion, it is necessary to send at least €10bn.

Earlier, on November 24, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius called on the country to invest more in its military capabilities. In the same month, he said that the Bundeswehr lacked €6 billion for modernization in 2025.

Bild reported in September that supplies to Ukraine had devastated the Bundeswehr and that at the current rate of procurement, Germany would only be able to rebuild its arms stockpile in 100 years. Researchers then concluded that the country needs a defense budget of €100 billion a year.