This year, the German government has approved arms exports worth at least 8.35 billion euros, which is the second largest amount of arms exports in the country’s history, according to data from the Ministry of Economy.
More than a quarter of the weapons and military equipment exported between January 1 and December 22 went to Ukraine, helping it fight the invading Russian army.
Germany’s governing coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and Liberal Democrats (FDP), which came to power in 2021, has promised to cut arms exports. But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine derailed those plans, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz lifted a long-standing ban on arms exports to conflict zones.
The export of arms and military equipment to Ukraine worth €2.24 billion has since been approved, including tanks, howitzers and the IRIS-T air defense system.
Excluding Ukraine, the government has approved arms exports worth more than six billion euros this year.
During the 16 years that Chancellor Angela Merkel was in power in Germany, the six billion euro mark was passed in just five years.
After Ukraine, Germany has exported the most weapons to four NATO countries: the Netherlands, the United States, Great Britain and Hungary.
