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War in Ukraine transforms Germany

What will a stronger German military mean for European security?

Within days of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Germany announced a number of significant changes to its economic and security policies. Chancellor Olaf Scholz described it as a Zeitenwende – or watershed – moment for Europe. The country would remove a self-imposed restraint on its armed forces - in place since the Second World War - and invest billions of dollars upgrading its military hardware. The government pledged to increase its defence spending to two percent of GDP making it the biggest military power in Europe. It also broke with tradition and began to supply arms to Ukraine and deploy troops on Nato's eastern flank. There is a shift in Germany's energy policy too. The country is heavily dependent on Russian oil, gas, and coal; but it has begun to cut these ties starting with the cancellation of Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Analysts say regardless of the outcome, the war in Ukraine will bring about profound and long-lasting changes to Germany and its place in Europe. So how significant is Germany's plan to re-arm its military?

Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of experts.
Producers: Paul Schuster and Junaid Ahmed.

Available now

49 minutes

Last on

Sun 20 Mar 2022 20:06GMT

Contributors

Claudia Major - Director, International Security Division, The German Institute for International and Security Affairs

Melinda Crane - Chief political correspondent, Deutsche Welle TV

Anna Sauerbrey - Foreign editor, Die Zeit

John Lough - Associate fellow for Russia and Eurasia, Chatham House; Author, Germany's Russia problem: The struggle for balance in Europe

Featuring:

Nils Schmid - Member of Bundestag; foreign policy spokesman, SPD

Aydan Özoguz - Vice President, Bundestag, SPD

Picture

Demonstration of a military tank in Munster, Germany. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

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