On June 3, 2022, the German Bundestag voted to create a special fund for the Bundeswehr in the amount of 100 billion euros and to make the necessary amendments to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (Article 87a) to ensure the activities of this fund without increasing public debt. The funds allocated from the state budget of the fund in the amount of 100 billion euros should be used to purchase new weapons and equipment for the German armed forces over the next few years. German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the foundation on February 27, three days after the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, calling his decision a "turning point" (Zeitenwende) in the defense policy of Germany.
Leopard 2A6 tanks and Puma infantry fighting vehicles of the German Army at the ILÜ 2017 demonstration exercises in Munster, October 2017 (c) German Ministry of Defense
According to the materials distributed in the Bundestag by the German government, the funds of the new fund should be distributed as follows:
422 million euros - particularly important R&D, including projects using artificial intelligence (in particular, "monitoring and ensuring the security of large territories using artificial intelligence") and for the development of a high-precision military navigation system NAVWAR (Navigation Warfare), independent of the use of satellite navigation systems.
1.932 billion euros - purchases of new field uniforms and equipment, including new boots, protective helmets, protective headphones and individual night vision devices.
20.742 billion euros - for management, communications and digital technologies. In particular, this includes the purchase of various military satellites and a new generation of military radio communications equipment.
16.6 billion euros - for the ground forces. The priority is the purchase of additional Puma BMP and Boxer BTR for a complete replacement in the Marder BMP troops, as well as the modernization of existing Puma BMP. It is also planned to purchase the Boxer APC as weapons carriers, the selection and purchase of a promising wheeled armored vehicle to replace the Fuchs APC fleet and new tracked transporters to replace the Bv 206S transporters. Increased allocations will also be allocated for the Franco-German program for the creation of a promising tank.
19.306 billion euros - for the naval forces. It is planned to build additional corvettes of the K130 project (apparently, the third series of five ships), large frigates of the F126 project (apparently, two optional to the four already ordered) and submarines of the 212CD project, as well as "multipurpose combat boats" (Mehrzweckkampfboote - as you can understand, boats in the spirit of the Swedish Combatboat CB90). Also on the list of purchases are new basic patrol aircraft (apparently Boeing P-8A Poseidon), a new missile system for warships, a new anti-aircraft complex for submarines and a new sonar system.
40.908 billion euros - for the air force. First of all, the financing will go to the purchase of Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II and Eurofighter fighters (to replace Tornado aircraft), 60 Boeing CH-47F Chinook transport helicopters (to replace CH-53G helicopters), armed IAI Heron unmanned aerial vehicles, light helicopters and the creation of a Eurofighter variant as an electronic warfare aircraft and suppression of air defense, as well as for the purchase of a promising air defense system. Also, R&D will be funded from a special fund until 2027 for the joint development with France and Spain of a promising fighter Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and the European missile defense program with a space detection echelon TWISTER (Timely Warning and Interception with Space-Based Theater Surveillance).
As you can easily see, a significant part of the procurement programs planned for financing from the new special fund for the Bundeswehr are already included in the budgets of the German Ministry of Defense. The transfer of their funding to a special fund will free up large amounts of the defense budget itself to finance the repair, maintenance and maintenance of available equipment and weapons (which has been the problem side of the Bundeswehr in recent years), to increase combat training and to maintain the armed forces and military personnel.
