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Boris Pistorius, a strong advocate for Ukraine, has been confirmed as Germany’s defense minister in Friedrich Merz’s new coalition government. This decision comes as Germany, the largest democracy in Europe, prepares to invest billions of euros into its military.
The 65-year-old Social Democrat, who is also the most popular politician in Germany, was selected by his party to be one of the seven SPD ministers in Merz’s government. Other notable SPD cabinet members include Lars Klingbeil, who will serve as vice-chancellor and finance minister, and Bärbel Bas, a respected MP from the Ruhr valley who will take on the role of labor minister.
The official signing of the coalition agreement between Merz’s CDU, the CSU, and the SPD is scheduled for Monday, with Merz expected to be elected as chancellor by the Bundestag the following day. This will make Merz the 10th chancellor of Germany since the establishment of the federal republic in 1949.
Pistorius, who previously served as defense minister under SPD chancellor Olaf Scholz, has been a key figure in Germany’s military support for Ukraine following Russia’s invasion earlier this year. Germany is the second-largest provider of military equipment to Kyiv, after the US.
In his new role, Pistorius will oversee the modernization of the Bundeswehr, which was prioritized by Scholz in 2022 with a historic allocation of €100 billion for military equipment. This effort received a significant boost after Merz’s Christian Democrats won the February elections, leading to a revised agreement with the SPD that exempts most defense spending from the country’s borrowing limits.
Merz justified this policy shift by pointing to the strained relationship with the US under former President Donald Trump and the increasing threat posed by Russia. Economists estimate that Germany will need over €400 billion in military spending in the coming years to ensure its security and defense capabilities.
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