https://harici.com.tr/almanyadan-yeni-silahlanma-stratejisi-ulkeyi-savunma-odakli-bicimde-yeniden-yapilandirmak/
New armament strategy from Germany: “Reconstruction of the country in a defense-oriented way”
In parallel with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte's call on NATO countries in Europe to move towards a “war mentality,” the German government has also prepared a comprehensive “defense cooperation” plan.
At an event organized by NATO's public relations department last week aimed at using intermediaries, including journalists, to spread the “message” of the military alliance, Rutte revealed that even today we no longer live “in peace.”
Arguing that the defense industry in Europe has been "emptied" due to "deporty investments made for decades" and small national interests, Rutte called for a "transition to the war mentality".
"National Security and Defense Industry Strategy" in Berlin
The German government has also long maintained the large-scale rearmament demanded by Rutte, and has adopted a National Security and Defense Industry Strategy document at the beginning of the month to further strengthen it.
The document states that Germany should "become defense-oriented as quickly as possible". To this end, the "rapidly increasing demand for military goods, services and innovations" will be met as quickly as possible.
To ensure this, the Federal Government has introduced a new strategy prepared in cooperation with the German defense industry, and Berlin relies on close defense industry cooperation in Europe. In this context, it is stated that the desired capacities can be created "only in cooperation with our European partners".
"National defense interests" condition for German-European cooperation
However, it is also emphasized that this cooperation is only possible in "suitable cases" and with the participation of German companies at an "even level".
Because in order to "protect and strengthen the strategic sovereignty and [movement] capability of the Federal Republic of Germany", it is necessary to "protect certain basic security and defense industry capabilities and capacities ... at the national level".
This also aims to secure Germany's defense industry leadership in the EU.
Farewell to civil R&D activities
The German government specifically recommends a number of measures.
For example, “a closer connection of research and development on civil and security and defense [...] will be examined”.
This will also require an “open-ended discussion about civil provisions” that have been in place for a while in some universities.
In addition, the current requirements for the construction and operation of arsenals will be reduced; at the same time, Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and the European Investment Bank will increasingly be used for arms financing.
Berlin is also trying to take measures to “diversify and resilient supply chains” in order to be independent of “enmity states”, especially China in practice.
This situation is likely to further increase the prices of defense products.The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) newspaper recently reported that the efforts of some new entrepreneurs in the US defense industry to completely abandon Chinese raw materials and components showed that this was possible with great effort, but costly: Spending was said to increase "six to ten times in some cases".
The German army is being given a global role
The fact that the National Security and Defense Industry Strategy clearly states that for the German armed forces "military capabilities, equipment and equipment" must be "deployable and operational in any situation, size, in geostrategic and climatic conditions", denies the claim that rearmament is only related to national defense.
The document also confirms that the German government intends to consolidate an increasing number of German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) operations in the Asia-Pacific region.
German troops are actually deployed in a wide variety of “climatic conditions” and “geostrategic areas” in Asia-Pacific and in its territorial waters and land parts leading to this region.
The fact that the Bundeswehr can also be “deployed” anywhere shows that Berlin openly holds the door open for German participation in wars around the world, including the Asia-Pacific region.