- Germany has called on France to increase defense spending.
- Minister Wadephul criticized the neighboring country’s insufficient defense efforts.
- NATO’s goal is to allocate five percent of GDP to defense by 2035.
- France has limited options for higher defense spending due to debt.
France must increase its defense spending and thus turn fine words about European sovereignty into concrete capabilities. He announced this in an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio station on Monday German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, informs TASR according to the AFP agency.
“He repeatedly and correctly refers to our quest for European sovereignty,” Wadephul said of French President Emmanuel Macron. “Anyone who talks about it must act accordingly in their own country,” added the minister.
European countries are currently facing pressure to strengthen their defense capabilities in order to better protect themselves. It is primarily related to the growing lack of interest on the part of the United States in security on the continent and doubts about the strength of the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO). Although NATO members pledged in June to allocate five percent of GDP to defense by 2035, according to Wadephul, not much progress has been made so far.
“Unfortunately, even in the French Republic, efforts to achieve this goal have so far been insufficient… France must also do what we are doing through difficult discussions,” Wadephul added.
Based on current budgets, it should Germany to spend more than 500 billion euros on defense between 2025 and 2029. AFP explains that France does not have such options, mainly due to debt.
