Green leader Annalena Baerbock believes the NATO target for defense spending is outdated - and would prefer to focus on another aspect.
Berlin - "I consider this orientation towards this two percent target to be a completely absurd debate": The Greens chairman Annalena Baerbock has questioned the NATO target for the level of national defense spending in her member states.
Baerbock pointed out in a live interview with Die
Zeit
that a country could achieve this goal more easily or more difficultly, depending on the economy.
In the midst of the current economic crisis, the federal government is spending significantly more, but nothing has changed in terms of equipment and capabilities.
Annalena Baerbock criticizes the two percent target and wants to make Joe Biden an offer
It is more crucial to clarify what the alliance needs for its own security.
NATO has discussed this too little in recent years.
In an interview with the new US President Joe Biden, for example, she would offer that Germany could be more involved in dealing with cyber attacks.
When asked whether Germany's obligations with a possible Chancellor Baerbock could no longer be relied on, the Green leader said that with a change of office, resolutions of a previous government could also be withdrawn.
That was also the case in the USA after the election of former President Donald Trump.
CSU calls Baerbock's stance on NATO financing "frightening"
The background to Baerbock's criticism is an agreement from 2014. It provides for all NATO member states to approach the benchmark by 2024 of spending at least two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense.
According to the latest public NATO calculations, German defense spending last year corresponded to a share of 1.57 percent - after 1.36 percent in the previous year.
The US in particular is pushing the federal government to increase.
Reactions to Baerbock's statements came promptly.
“NATO is our most important security guarantee.
That Annalena Baerbock is not interested in it is frightening, ”said CSU General Secretary Markus Blume on Wednesday of the
dpa
in Munich.
The new US President Joe Biden has thrown open the door to revitalize the alliance.
“We have to seize this opportunity!
The CSU is clear about the two percent target. "
FDP irritated about statements by Annalena Baerbock (Greens) about NATO
The defense policy spokeswoman for the FDP parliamentary group, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, was also irritated.
"Annalena Baerbock's statements show very clearly that the Greens are still not far with their expertise in foreign and security policy," said Strack-Zimmermann on Wednesday of the
dpa
in Berlin.
According to Strack-Zimmermann, the statements show that Baerbock “does not believe in alliance commitments and that Germany's reliability would rapidly decline if Green government were to participate”.
(dpa / frs)