Internal and external security is not considered the Greens’ core competence. However, several of the party’s top politicians are now calling for more money for the Bundeswehr, police and secret services. What are they demanding?
In view of increasing violent conflicts in the world and the threat of terrorism in Germany, leading Green Party politicians are calling for more money and better equipment for the Bundeswehr and police.
Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck called for a timely debate about the financing of the Bundeswehr after the 100 billion euro special fund expires. Green party leader Omid Nouripour called for the security authorities in Germany to be strengthened.
The federal government set up the special fund for the Bundeswehr after Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) linked this to the term “turning point” and promised that Germany would immediately invest two percent of its gross domestic product in defense.
Habeck: The Bundeswehr will need a lot of money
“If we take the turning point seriously, Germany must do more for its security. For this we will need a lot of money for the Bundeswehr,” said Vice Chancellor Habeck to the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung”. “But the special fund will be used up in not too long – what then?” asked the Green politician. He believes that a possible solution would be to take out loans beyond the previously permitted limits. “The debt brake has good reasons and it applies to the work of this coalition,” Habeck made clear. “But we should think beyond the present day and consider whether the political rules we have set ourselves still fit the changing times.” Answers are needed as to “how we can meet the various investment needs in the country over a longer period of time.”
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) said on Friday in Hamburg that around 66 percent of the 100 billion euros would be contractually bound at the end of this year. Like Habeck, the minister pointed out the problem after the pot ran out. “The challenge begins in the years 27/28. The special funds will be used up,” Pistorius explained at the Bundeswehr’s leadership academy and emphasized that further fulfillment of the two percent target would then mean “all in all 20 percent more than today.” .
“Jerk” for better defense against terrorism
Green Party leader Nouripour sees new challenges for the security authorities in Germany because of the Gaza war as a result of the terrorist attack by the Islamist Hamas on Israel. “We have to noticeably increase the capabilities of the police and intelligence services. This applies to personnel as well as equipment,” he told the newspapers of the Funke media group (Saturday). “This requires a national effort. The federal and state governments should get together quickly and find solutions. We need a push to improve the defense against terrorism.” Nouripour spoke of a “basic noise in the Islamist scene” that is getting louder and louder.
Police officers arrested a 29-year-old in Duisburg on Tuesday. The man convicted as an IS terrorist is now in custody. He is said to have declared his willingness to carry out an Islamist attack to a chat partner in Syria. As a possible target of the attack, he is said to have found out about pro-Israel demonstrations on the Internet. After terrorists from Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, carried out a massacre of civilians in Israel and abducted more than 200 people, there have been repeated demonstrations by Palestinians and supporters on German streets, in which some participants cheered the Islamist Hamas.
Demands for special funds for internal security
The chairman of the parliamentary control committee, Konstantin von Notz, had already demanded on Friday that the security authorities be equipped with personnel, finances and technology so that they can meet the challenges that this time brings with it. In the capital podcast of “The Pioneer”, the Green politician said that the security situation in Germany was threatened by the tense geopolitical situation, Russia’s illegal attempts to influence elections, the conflict in China, espionage activity, but also Islamism and militant right-wing extremism.
The Green parliamentary group therefore supports the demand of the police union (GdP) to provide a special fund for security. In mid-October, the GdP federal chairman Jochen Kopelke called for a “special internal security fund” in an incendiary letter to Chancellor Scholz – analogous to the planned investments in the Bundeswehr.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
