Germany is preparing a wave of procurement orders worth hundreds of billions of euros, including 20 Eurofighter fighter jets, up to 3,000 Boxer armored vehicles and up to 3,500 Patria infantry fighting vehicles.
Sources told Reuters that the purchases are part of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's effort to build Europe's most powerful conventional army, with the aim of reducing dependence on an increasingly unpredictable ally, the United States, and taking greater responsibility for European security, A2 CNN reports.
Earlier this year, Merz secured the parliamentary support needed to exempt defense spending from Germany's constitutionally set debt limits, enabling his government to finance military reorganization.
Germany's regular defense budget is projected to rise to about 83 billion euros ($95.8 billion) in 2026, 20 billion more than in 2025. The Eurofighter order alone is expected to cost between 4 billion and 5 billion euros, the sources said, while the Boxer vehicles are estimated at 10 billion euros. The Patria vehicles are expected to cost roughly 7 billion euros.
The defense ministry is also finalizing plans to buy more IRIS-T air defense systems and several hundred SkyRanger drone defense platforms, the sources said, noting that financial details for these purchases have not yet been finalized. Merz has pledged to meet NATO's new standard of spending 3.5% of GDP on defense by 2029 - well ahead of most alliance members. (A2 Televizion)
A2 CNN Livestream
MUND TE LEXONI GJITHASHTU
