Merz: Germany will build strongest conventional army in Europe
www.newsweek.com
European allies have stressed the urgency of growing and improving their military capabilities to counter Russia.

The Bundeswehr has around 181,600 active personnel, according to Global Firepower, which compiles military data.

For overall military power, the Global Firepower index ranks Germany third in the European Union (EU) behind Italy in second and France at the top. Within NATO, Germany ranks sixth in the military power index, behind Turkey in fourth, France in third, the U.K. in second, and the U.S. in first place.

The planned increase in German defense spending will please the Trump administration. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. expects NATO allies to build up to spending 5 percent of their GDP on defense, and Washington will also do the same.

  • Sugar_Sparky@lemmy.world
    101·
    9 days ago

    Way to go, you MAGA vermin… you managed to get Germany to re-equip again.

    Any idea what happens when Germany rearms itself, historically speaking??

    • nao@sh.itjust.works
      5·
      9 days ago

      The situation is different this time though: Europe is being threatened from one side and losing support from another. I read this as an attempt to take more responsibility.

      • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
        7·
        9 days ago

        Europe is being threatened from one side and losing support from another.

        For now. Remember that fascism is knocking on Germans’ doors right as we speak.

      • FistingEnthusiast@lemmynsfw.comEnglish
        7·
        9 days ago

        Have you seen how the far-right has been growing in Germany?

        What happens if they build a bloody great army, then some cunt gets in and decides that they want to use their new toy?

        Trump is itching to nuke someone, and don’t think that his idiocy couldn’t happen elsewhere

      • GregorGizeh@lemmy.zip
        3·
        9 days ago

        Pretty sure it’s just memes. People mostly know, both inside and outside of Germany, that the EU is a phenomenal instrument of peace and prosperity not only for us germans but also the other members. And that Germany has nothing of value to gain and much to lose by antagonizing or attacking its neighbors and friends again.

        Or, a bit more pointedly, we don’t need to conquer Europe any more when they are all our economic vassals.

  • souperk@reddthat.com
    12·
    8 days ago

    Military spending is a self fullfiling prophesy. A country spends more because other countries are spending more. Recession kicks in and somehow the goverment has to justify its military spending when people are getting hungry, so it goes to war.

    Europe was built on the promise of stopping war without military power, that’s a step in the wrong direction.

  • Jumi@lemmy.world
    23·
    8 days ago

    It’s such a waste of money and resources. We don’t even have an enemy who we would need the “strongest conventional army in Europe” against.