Former adviser to German Chancellor Angela Merkel on military policy Erich Vad considers the proposed by the German government insufficient special fund for the modernization of the Bundeswehr in the amount of 100 billion euros. The retired brigadier general stated this in an interview with RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), published on Sunday, May 22.
In his opinion, the German defense industry will be able to increase its capabilities and ensure the expected quality of weapons only if “even after the expiration of the special fund of 100 billion euros, a correspondingly high level of defense spending in the amount of 2 percent of gross domestic product is maintained. “. “Financing adequate defense capability is a permanent task of the state,” Wade stressed.
According to him, the German defense industry suffers from excessive bureaucracy, and is also “increasingly facing problems” from suppliers. We are talking about both dependence on “critical or rare raw materials” and the unwillingness of suppliers to supply products to “defense companies,” the general said.
German trade unions – against uncontrolled rearmament
Yasmin Fahimi, chairman of the German Trade Union Federation (DGB), opposes spending 100 billion euros from the Bundeswehr’s special fund on armaments alone. “There should be no uncontrolled rearmament that provokes new provocations,” she told Funke Mediengruppe. More than good is needed trained Bundeswehr“first of all – cooperation in the field of development and conflict prevention.”
Enshrined in the German Constitution
According to the ruling coalition in Germany, a special fund should be enshrined in the German Constitution. To make such a decision in the Bundestag, recalls the dpa agency, a two-thirds majority is needed. This can only be achieved with the support of Christian Democrat deputies, with whom intensive negotiations are currently underway.
The war in Ukraine and the modernization of the Bundeswehr
Russian aggression against Ukraine led German politicians to reassessment of previous ideas about the tasks of the armed forces countries. After February 24, Germany realized the reality of the threat to peace in Europe and began to take the necessary measures. Already in March, it was decided to purchase American fifth-generation F-3 multifunctional fighter-bombers for the Bundeswehr and create a special fund in the amount of 100 additional billion euros this year for the modernization of the Bundeswehr.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Long and expensive, or Eurofighter
The Eurofighter is a modern combat aircraft of the Bundeswehr, and one of the most controversial. The prestige of the project – several European countries participated in the development – was hit by serious operational problems. The Eurofighter proved to be expensive: a single-seat 16-meter fighter costs over 100 million euros.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
“Tornado” that flies only during the day
Deliveries of new fighters are delayed. So, Tornados are still flying, which it is high time to take out of service – the first such fighter in the Bundeswehr flew 40 years ago. Today there are 86 of them left, but no more than 30 are ready to fly. Some, due to problems with cockpit lighting, can only fly during the day.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
How much longer will this old plane fly?
One of the most pressing problems not only in the Bundeswehr, but also in most European armies is reliable transport aircraft. The Bundeswehr has been waiting for a very long time to replace the cargo C-160 Transall developed back in the 1960s. There are no more than 57 copies left, of which no more than 25 take to the air. It is being replaced by the Airbus A400M, but everything is not so simple with it.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Main headache
The Airbus A400M is considered the most modern transport aircraft, but it is also one of the most problematic. So far, the Bundeswehr has received 8 A400M aircraft, but only one is ready for take-off today, the rest are under repair. After every 20 flight hours, the 45-meter liner is sent for inspection. The other day one of the new cars broke down in Lithuania, and the old Transall had to take out the Minister of Defense from there.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Helicopters that don’t take off
The Bundeswehr has no less problems with helicopters. Due to problems with the engines in February 2015, it was necessary to temporarily abandon the use of transport helicopters NH90. After initial problems, it was possible to increase the combat readiness of modern Tiger combat helicopters, out of 37, 20 fly. But out of 22 copies of the multi-purpose Sea Lynx, only five take off.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Booking issues
The Bundeswehr is modernizing the fleet of armored vehicles. But in 2014, it turned out that more than half of the 189 multi-purpose wheeled Boxers were not ready for operation. True, since then there have been no complaints about them. In the meantime, the outdated Marder infantry fighting vehicle (pictured), which has served since 1971, is being replaced by the Puma infantry fighting vehicle, now there are 78 of them in service. The pumas of the first series had a roof leak, but the defect has already been eliminated.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
The Bundeswehr is waiting for proposals from Meads
The Bundeswehr decided long ago to upgrade its missile defense systems and replace the outdated Patriot air defense systems. Preference this time was given to the Meads air defense system, especially since the money of European taxpayers was invested in its development. The infographic shows how Meads works.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Or is it Patriot?
So far, the contract with the Meads manufacturer has not been concluded. One of the reasons is the increase in the cost of the project from four to seven billion euros, according to media reports citing high-ranking officers of the Bundeswehr. This news was not missed in the manufacturer of the Patriot air defense system – Raytheon. They expressed hope that their system still had chances and assured that they could make air defense systems that would be cheaper than Meads.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
Ships that rarely go to sea
Back in December 2001, Germany ordered five K130 corvettes. Initially, it was assumed that they would go into service in 2007. But due to problems with the engines, the air conditioning system and computer programs, the delivery of the K130 to the fleet was greatly delayed. Today, only two out of five corvettes are ready for operations.
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What the Bundeswehr needs to spend money on (photo gallery)
At least four out of ten
The Bundeswehr is going to order five more K130 corvettes from 2018, so that at least four go to sea on the first order. The Bundeswehr explains the need to purchase 90-meter ships with NATO requirements. The preliminary price of the project is 1.5 billion euros.
Author: Mikhail Bushuev
