{"id":72,"date":"2026-05-23T13:08:23","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T13:08:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usabusinesschronicle.com\/?p=72"},"modified":"2026-05-23T13:08:23","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T13:08:23","slug":"germanys-rearmament-is-stunning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usabusinesschronicle.com\/?p=72","title":{"rendered":"Germany\u2019s Rearmament Is Stunning \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The sign in the window of the German army\u2019s storefront career center in downtown Berlin suggested it would be open all afternoon for inquiries about joining the armed forces, or Bundeswehr<\/em>. But the doors were locked on a cold November day, with no lights on and no one inside. The same was true the next day when I tried again. \u201cWhat kind of message does that send?\u201d my friend, a former soldier who accompanied me, asked scornfully. \u201cIt\u2019s like so much about the Bundeswehr<\/em> these days\u2014underfunded, undermanned, underequipped, and undervalued by the public, which still doesn\u2019t really understand why Germany needs an army.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more Putin\u2019s Energy Blitzkrieg is Backfiring<\/a><\/p>\n

Eighty years after the end of World War II, as Russia escalates attacks against Europe and the U.S. to turn away from the transatlantic alliance, Germany is undergoing a historic shift. In 2022, then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz called it a Zeitenwende<\/em>\u2014a \u201cwatershed moment\u201d\u2014and mandated a one-off infusion of \u20ac100 billion in defense spending, nearly doubling Germany\u2019s previous annual allocation. The first thing his successor, Friedrich Merz, did after being elected last year was to amend the constitution\u2019s \u201cbrake\u201d on borrowing to pay for weapons and ammunition. Germany is now on track to spend \u20ac650 billion on the military over the next five years, more than doubling the amount disbursed in the previous five years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Just days before I visited that closed army career center, Merz\u2019s coalition government agreed to a new conscription law that could double the number of men ready to fight, growing the Bundeswehr<\/em> from 180,000 to 260,000 soldiers and building the reserve force to 200,000. (Women aren\u2019t required to comply with the new requirements but may volunteer.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is no longer any doubt that Germany is broadly committed to rearmament. A prospect that might once have provoked anxiety in Europe and North America is now broadly welcomed in the West. But that doesn\u2019t make it easy for the German people, shaped by decades of post-World War II pacifism.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Considerable majorities support increased defense spending, and over half favor enlarging the army. But the consensus is incomplete; the far right and the far left oppose many of the changes. Even among centrist voters, many are torn\u2014struggling with the government\u2019s decisions and unsure what they mean for German national identity. Also unclear: Will the buildup occur in time? With European intelligence experts warning that Russia could be ready to attack a Western nation by 2029, Germany doesn\u2019t have long to make a tectonic shift.\u00a0<\/p>\n

S\u00f6nke Marahrens helped me understand the scope of the German transformation when we met for lunch in Berlin. A short man with a receding hairline, Marahrens spent many years in the military, rising to the rank of colonel. Now a fellow at Kiel University\u2019s Institute for Security Policy, he recalls decades of\u00a0deep-seated pacifism since 1945.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Popular guilt and shame built through the 1950s and 60s as Germans learned the whole truth about Nazi militarism and antisemitism. The Bundeswehr, created in 1955, played a critical part in NATO deterrence of the Soviet Union. But the Cold War also fanned public doubts about a German military, sparking fears of a nuclear conflict on German soil. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 eased this anxiety but ushered in new concerns: Why did Germany need an army now that the Cold War was over and all its neighbors were friendly? As recently as a decade ago, Germans were still so ambivalent toward the military that uniformed soldiers returning from Afghanistan were called names and threatened in public places.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Even today, Marahrens told me, German soldiers feel misunderstood and neglected. No one ever tells a soldier, \u201cThank you for your service.\u201d Both left and right were critical of a 2024 law creating a national Veterans Day. Voters remain more focused on domestic issues than foreign policy, and most are ambivalent about the use of force. \u201cGermany\u2019s strategic culture has been not to have a strategic culture,\u201d the career soldier explains. \u201cThere is no war mindset, and many young people still don\u2019t understand why we need a strong military.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Public opinion surveys bear him out: Attitudes are changing, but still ambivalent. Poll after poll shows a growing awareness of foreign threats. A 2025 survey conducted by the nonprofit More In Common found a stunning of German respondents were concerned about \u201ca war in Europe in the next few years.\u201d Other polling by the Bundeswehr Center for Military History and Social Sciences finds the public well-informed about growing Russian revanchism and its threats, including gray-zone or hybrid war.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Russian aggression is only half the problem. The new attitude in Washington\u2014Donald Trump\u2019s regular disparagement of Europe and to intervene in the continent\u2019s domestic politics\u2014is just as alarming. According to More in Common, two-thirds of Germans agree that \u201cwhen in doubt, we can and should no longer rely on military assistance from the U.S.\u201d The nonprofit\u2019s focus groups underscore how anxious many Germans are about the fraying transatlantic relationship, feeling alone and \u201cunprotected\u201d in an increasingly dangerous world.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

More in Common, the Bundeswehr Center, and other surveys find large majorities of Germans favor increased military spending, and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, a principal architect of the arms buildup, has been Germany\u2019s most popular politician for two years running.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Still, even as their fears mount, many Germans remain hesitant about the use of force. More in Common finds the public split down the middle on Germany\u2019s role in the world, with 45 percent saying the nation should \u201crefrain from international leadership.\u201d Only 29 percent feel that \u201cmilitary means may be necessary to resolve international conflicts.\u201d According to the Bundeswehr Center, only 11 percent of adults under 50 would be willing to take up arms to defend their country, and a 2024 worldwide Gallup ranking of nations\u2019 willingness to go to war puts Germany near the bottom of the list\u2014above only Italy and Japan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

My friend, the former soldier, who asked not to be named, helped me make sense of these contradictions. \u201cThings are changing, but there\u2019s still something missing,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt\u2019s about culture. People see there\u2019s a threat. But anything military is still met with skepticism. People are torn and struggling to come to grips with what\u2019s needed\u2014to the point that many would rather just not think about it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The German political debate mirrors this public ambivalence. Among mainstream parties, the chancellor\u2019s center-right Christian Democratic Union and its sister party, the Christian Social Union, are the most committed to rearming. But they are constrained by their coalition partner, the center-left Social Democratic Party, which is sharply divided between hawks and doves. The center-left Greens have shifted the most since Russia invaded Ukraine and now stand solidly in favor of stronger deterrence. But parties to its left are generally opposed, and the most extreme are explicitly pro-Russia. Rising on the far right and casting a shadow over every facet of German political life, the Alternative f\u00fcr Deutschland, supported today by 26 percent of voters, is fiercely nationalistic but favors better relations with Moscow.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

What this means in practice: a working consensus among mainstream parties has pushed through the measures needed to unleash a historic military buildup, but not without interference from the hesitant outliers, some more extreme than others.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The SPD\u2019s Ralf Stegner is a leading voice among center-left doves. A somber-looking man with a square brow and horn-rimmed glasses, he\u2019s eager to explain what he sees as the nuances of his position. \u201cI\u2019m not a pacifist,\u201d he tells me, \u201cbut I\u2019m against war.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

His main argument: that defense spending cuts into other expenditures, including social programs, angering voters and opening the way to the far right. He also underscores the risk of nuclear war\u2014still a flashpoint for many Germans. \u201cThe nuclear threat is still very real,\u201d he warns me, \u201cand as long as that\u2019s the case, it makes sense to negotiate.\u201d Other centrist elites aligned with Stegner are eager for a negotiated peace that would allow Germany to resume oil and gas imports from Russia.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more Ukraine: Requiem for a Citizen Soldier<\/a><\/p>\n

Still, despite his combative talk, there\u2019s something defensive, almost besieged, about Stegner\u2019s tone. \u201cWhen I go on television, it\u2019s four-to-one,\u201d he grumbles. \u201cThere\u2019s very little tolerance today for those who question the military logic.\u201d Tellingly, neither he nor others in the SPD who oppose a military buildup have been able to do more than trim around the edges.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Berlin easily overrode pacifist objections to NATO\u2019s new requirement that members more than double the share of GDP they spend on defense and related infrastructure. Indeed, Germany is likely to reach the 5 percent goal before any other big country in the alliance except Poland. SPD doves managed to block mandatory military service for the time being\u2014the new conscription law requires only that young men register and undergo a physical. But if voluntary recruitment fails to meet the government\u2019s ambitious goals, parliament must revisit the issue and will, in all likelihood, stiffen requirements. Stegner and friends have succeeded in preventing the coalition from sending long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine. Yet Germany remains Kyiv\u2019s largest European donor, and the Merz coalition has moved forcefully to head off the resumption of Russian oil and gas imports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With nearly twice as many followers as the SPD, the far-right AfD poses a more serious potential obstacle to German rearmament. The AfD\u2019s nationalist roots prevented it from opposing the conscription law\u2014it took no position, for or against. But the party objects to military aid for Ukraine, calls for lifting sanctions against Russia, and has expressed strong support for resuming oil and gas imports. Despite the faction\u2019s rising popularity, particularly in eastern Germany, a mainstream political \u201cfirewall\u201d prevents it from participating in government. But this hasn\u2019t stopped it from advancing Moscow\u2019s interests. With party cochair Tino Chrupalla insisting that Russia poses no threat to Germany, AfD lawmakers have been accused of disclosing German military secrets and accepting payment to advance Russian influence operations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Longtime CSU member of parliament Thomas Silberhorn isn\u2019t afraid of these or any other political obstacles. A slender man with boyish good looks who has advocated for a stronger military since before the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Silberhorn credits Friedrich Merz with launching an unstoppable transformation. The chancellor\u2019s dramatic early decision to lift the debt brake \u201cset the stage,\u201d Silberhorn says, for NATO\u2019s July commitment to higher defense spending by all members, and this in turn \u201callowed Trump to reaffirm his solidarity with the alliance.\u201d Now, with the new German budget and conscription law on the books, \u201cthere are no bottlenecks. We\u2019re on the path. The orders have been given to industry. We just need time to complete the buildup.\u201d Also importantly, Silberhorn is convinced that the needed changes can be accomplished before the next federal elections in 2029.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Resolute and confident, the veteran lawmaker shrugs off my questions about public ambivalence. \u201cThat\u2019s a question of leadership,\u201d he explains. \u201cWe need to describe the situation clearly and make sure people understand what the consequences will be if Russia wins in Ukraine and moves against Europe.\u201d At several points in our conversation, he echoes what he tells his constituency in Bavaria. \u201cPeople understand that the world is changing,\u201d he says. There\u2019s a growing awareness of the Russian threat and, as necessary, a growing sense that Europe needs to take care of its own security. \u201cI tell my constituents,\u201d he reports, \u201cThe Americans will sell us weapons. But we have to shoot for ourselves.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cVoters understand,\u201d Silberhorn maintains, \u201cthat what we\u2019re doing is for us\u2014not because Trump or anyone else says we should.\u201d With the proper leadership, he is convinced, the German public will even support Merz\u2019s goal of fielding the strongest army in Europe. \u201cWhy shouldn\u2019t we?\u201d Silberhorn asks. \u201cWho else will do it?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Can Germany pull it off? Will it? Even with essential laws in place and growing political will, there remains one potential stumbling block: industrial capacity. Berlin plans to continue purchasing some American weaponry and is looking to buy European. Yet roughly half of upcoming outlays are expected to flow through German contractors. Many in political and business circles hope that expanded production of weapons and ammunition can replace some automotive manufacturing, which has been sputtering for nearly a decade under pressure from Chinese imports and rising energy prices. But a few early experiments suggest this may be more difficult than it sounds.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Plant conversion tends to be slow and expensive. Skilled labor that left the auto industry as long ago as 2017 will need to be rehired or replaced and trained. Even the most expansive defense buildup is unlikely to supplant the automotive industry at the center of the German economy. In 2025, according to Deutsche Bank, after nearly a decade of decline, carmakers still employed 10 times as many people as defense firms and accounted for 10 times as large a share of GDP. Yet many workers in hard-hit manufacturing regions are hoping for jobs in new weapons factories\u2014despite ambivalent feelings about rearmament.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Former Bundeswehr officer Yorck Hesselbarth, now a principal in a defense tech startup that works with the armed forces, would like to see Berlin do more to accelerate an industrial transition. Friends in the investment business tell him prospects look bright. Defense-related investment instruments, once nonexistent in Germany, are proliferating and attracting mounting interest from funders. But Hesselbarth, a large man with short curly hair, says old regulations prevent many banks from investing in defense companies, and the government is AWOL.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could be working to transition some portion of the auto industry,\u201d he says. \u201cIt should also be promoting a new tier of innovative startups to feed into the big, existing defense manufacturers. This is an opportunity to build a new defense industrial base\u2014an engine of growth that combines today\u2019s digital savvy with the manufacturing prowess of an earlier era. But the government isn\u2019t doing any of that, and it has no plan for the future.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Still, in the end, whatever Berlin does, much will depend on public sentiment. The Zeitenwende <\/em>will not succeed unless private investors, unemployed factory workers, voters, and draft-age men, among others, get over their mixed feelings about a strong military.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Many signs are positive. Some polls suggest the public may be ahead of the government\u2014eager to move more quickly and decisively toward rearmament. One survey by YouGov found that those in favor of compulsory military service far outnumbered those who think conscription should remain voluntary\u201454 percent to 40 percent. Corporate lawyer Malte Symann makes a similar point about the federal budget. \u201cMy friends don\u2019t understand,\u201d he says impatiently. \u201cWhy is this government still so focused on social spending\u2014plans for additional pension payments for mothers? That money should be feeding into the defense buildup.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Symann tells me he\u2019s looking for a civil defense program that would allow him to devote a few days each quarter to military training. A wiry, dark-haired man with a high forehead, he says he wants to be prepared to do his part if Germany is attacked. \u201cI would sacrifice,\u201d he tells me. \u201cI\u2019m eager to do it\u2014and many in my generation would do it.\u201d The new conscription law will test this willingness. The nation will only reach its goal if enough men volunteer for the armed forces, and no one knows what share will answer the call, despite generous pay raises and other promised improvements to recruitment and training.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

I tried to test public willingness by asking the Berliners I met about patriotism\u2014would they say they were proud to be German? Symann pointed to the 2006 World Cup soccer championship held in Berlin. \u201cThat was the first time in my lifetime that I saw a German flag waved with pride,\u201d he recalled. But even today, 20 years later, one 30-something man who asked not to be named told me he and his friends were still hesitant. \u201cThinking of myself as European makes more sense to me,\u201d he said. Another man about the same age countered that things are changing, particularly in his generation, and he was \u201ctempted to say yes\u201d\u2014but he still couldn\u2019t quite bring himself to utter the words.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lawmaker Thomas Silberhorn acknowledged that the road ahead could be difficult. \u201cIt took a long time to make these decisions,\u201d he reflects, \u201cmore than a decade. And it takes a lot of pressure to bring us to act. But now is the time. We simply must get it done. This is the task of our generation, and it cannot be postponed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more Half a Loaf From the Center for American Progress<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After decades of restraint, Germany is racing to rearm as Russia threatens Europe and U.S. security guarantees look shaky.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":71,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,33,19,2,3],"tags":[34],"class_list":["post-72","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-books","category-magazine","category-newsletter","category-politics","category-the-monopolized-economy","tag-tagged-afd-bundeswehr-conscription-defense-spending-european-security-friedrich-merz-germany-nato-olaf-scholz-russia-transatlantic-alliance"],"yoast_head":"\nGermany\u2019s Rearmament Is Stunning \u00a0 - USA Business Chronicle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usabusinesschronicle.com\/?p=72\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Germany\u2019s Rearmament Is Stunning \u00a0 - 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