A majority of Germans consider financial pledges for the Bundeswehr to be too low
A majority of Germans consider the defense budget plans of the Traffic Light Government to be too low. In a survey for ZDF-"Politbarometer", 52 percent of the interviewees stated that the German government does too little for the financing of the Bundeswehr. Eleven percent said it does too much, and 31 percent consider the planned financing to be just right.
The heads of the Traffic Light Government reached an agreement on budget points for the coming year a week ago. The agreement envisions a smaller defense budget than what Defense Minister Boris Pistorius had demanded. He had requested a need of around 58 billion Euros, but the compromise only sees 53 billion Euros allocated. By the year 2028, the defense budget is then supposed to reach around 80 billion Euros.
The "Politbarometer" also asked about the ability to defend and deter through NATO, which celebrated its 75-year anniversary at its summit in Washington this week. The judgment of the interviewees is divided: 48 percent believe that NATO is well-equipped in this regard, while 42 percent doubt it.
For the representative "Politbarometer", the Mannheimer Research Group Wahlen interviewed 1341 randomly selected eligible voters by telephone and online from July 9-11. The possible error margin lies between two and three percentage points.
The Financial promises made by the Traffic Light Government regarding the Bundeswehr's financing have not satisfied a majority of Germans, according to the ZDF-Politbarometer. Despite the Germans' concerns, the recently agreed defense budget only allocates 53 billion Euros for 2022, falling short of Defense Minister Boris Pistorius' requested 58 billion Euros.
