German army must double in size, commander says
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Correspondence among German military chiefs reveals plans to increase the size of the German army by 45,000 troops by 2029.
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German Bundeswehr soldiers stand next to a self-propelled howitzer PzH 2000 of German Army during the Lithuanian-German division-level international military exercise 'Grand Quadriga 2024', May 29, 2024. (AP)
Germany's army must add 100,000 active troops to its current force of 62,000 to meet new NATO targets aimed at countering the growing threat of Russia, its commander said in a confidential paper seen by Reuters on Thursday.
"It is imperative for the army to become sufficiently ready for war by 2029 and provide the capabilities Germany pledged (to NATO) by 2035," Alfons Mains, German military chief, wrote in a September 2 letter to the chief of defence staff Carsten Breuer.
Germany has already initiated an increase in its commitments to allies located in eastern Europe, a move which includes not only the establishment of a German brigade in Lithuania that is set to number approximately 5,000 troops but also a naval patrol deployment in the Baltic Sea aimed at countering the threat of undersea sabotage.
Additional 45,000 active troops required by 2029
He stated that reaching these targets was unattainable under the currently authorized personnel numbers, a figure which also encompasses 37,000 non-active troops. Mais called for an increase of approximately 45,000 active troops by 2029, which is the year the US-led alliance has stated it anticipates Russia will possess the capability to launch a large-scale attack against Western allies.
Additionally, to meet the NATO targets that were agreed upon during a summit in June and to build the necessary reserves for a war of attrition similar to the one in Ukraine, Mais projected a requirement for an additional 45,000 active troops by the year 2035. He additionally called for some 10,000 troops to strengthen territorial defense.
He stated that NATO had adjusted its capability targets in response to the significantly heightened threats that followed Russia's operation in Ukraine in 2022, citing a first rough estimate that a total of around 460,000 personnel from Germany would be necessary, divided into some 260,000 active troops and around 200,000 reservists.
Wider context
In June, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced that Germany would require up to 60,000 additional active personnel across all military branches to meet the new NATO targets, a necessary increase that would bring the future total strength of Germany's armed forces, the Bundeswehr, to approximately 260,000. However, according to Ministry figures, they have yet to achieve the goal of 203,000 troops that was set in 2018, and they remain understaffed by approximately 20,000 regular personnel.
This comes as part of Germany's military build-up, which most recently included plans to acquire new fighter jets and modernize its Taurus cruise missile.
According to a government document seen by Reuters on September 5, Germany is seeking parliamentary approval for approximately 80 defense projects by the end of the year, a list which includes the purchase of Eurofighter jets and the modernization of the Taurus cruise missile.
Among the listed items is a purchase of 20 Eurofighter jets from Airbus, a package referred to as Tranche 5 that was previously announced by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and the list also includes plans to modernize the Taurus cruise missile system while establishing a new production line for its next-generation variant, known as the Taurus NEO.
