In a letter to Finance Minister Christian Lindner, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht demand triple the annual budget for military aid to Ukraine.
Baerbock (Bündnis90 / Die Grünen) and Lambrecht (SPD) want € 2.2 billion to be made available for military aid to Ukraine in 2023, compared to € 697 million in the annual draft budget.
The increase in the aid budget is necessary for Germany “to take on in a tangible and visible way the responsibility that our international partners expect of us”, said the two in the confidential letter.
The budget increase would also help Berlin “protect its strategic interests,” they added.
Lindner was recently put under pressure to finance Berlin’s 200 billion euro energy bailout package through a special fund outside the regular budget to meet Germany’s debt limit.
However, according to Baerbock and Lambrecht, the budget increase for Ukraine should also be financed through a special fund.
Budgetary issues are a key element of the dispute in the German ruling coalition.
While the Social Democrats and the Greens are calling for public investment in social and climate policy measures, especially in view of the energy crisis and the cost of living, Lindner’s FDP wants to keep the electoral promise not to raise new taxes and achieve a balanced budget.
