Germany Urges EU to Ease Fiscal Rules to Boost Defense Funds

  • The push marks a big shift for fiscally conservative Berlin
  • EU leaders meet Thursday to discuss boosting military spending
Bundeswehr soldiers during a military exercise in 2024.Photographer: Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Germany called for the European Union to reform its fiscal rules to allow countries to make bigger defense expenditures, a massive shift for a country known for its spending restraint.

A German envoy to the EU shocked his colleagues in Brussels on Wednesday by urging the bloc to allow additional budget room for member states to boost defense-related outlays in the longer term given the geopolitical circumstances, according to people familiar with the matter.