Despite its guilt in World War II, Russian President Vladimir Putin has unwittingly accomplished what Western allies have long sought: convincing Germany to accept its place as a key global power by pursuing an assertive foreign policy backed by a robust military.
In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz proposed a substantial increase in military spending on Sunday in what is being hailed as a historic speech that signals a paradigm shift in German foreign and defence policy.
After years of defying requests from NATO partners, Scholz said Germany would now invest more than 2% of its economic output in defence, up from approximately 1.5 percent now, and establish up a 100-billion-euro ($112 billion) fund to re-equip the military.
He also revealed measures to lessen Germany’s reliance on Russia for half of its gas needs, raising hopes that Berlin will pay greater attention to geo-strategic issues in all of its trade agreements.
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