Der Spiegel: Lambrecht admits the inability of German forces to fulfill their obligations within NATO
Der Spiegel reported that German Defense Minister Christina Lambrecht admitted that the Germanobligations armed forces are currently unable to fully fulfill their within NATO.
The newspaper, citing a confidential report of the Defense Committee, notes that at the moment, readiness to carry out NATO tasks, such as strengthening the eastern flank of the alliance, is guaranteed in principle, albeit “with partial restrictions” and in addition, as indicated in the report, there are problems with the deployment of the NATO Rapid Reaction Force by the German army next year, an example of which is the presence of a NATO unit in Lithuania.
There may be problems with the deployment of troops in Slovakia.
In particular, there are important markers in radar systems, including airspace radars, portable radios or command center software, and while “legacy systems” ensure operational readiness, the report warns that “increased failure rates” can be expected in the future.
Against this backdrop, the German defense minister believes that despite the creation of a special fund of 100 billion euros, the defense budget should be increased as early as next year.
Lambrecht stressed that “gaps in manpower, equipment, infrastructure, spare parts and ammunition resulting from decades of structural underfunding cannot be filled quickly,” and modernizing the Bundeswehr requires “realistic management of expectations.