Germany to form national security council

Berlin expects the body to address internal and external threats amid the country’s continued military buildup

Germany is reportedly planning to establish the National Security Council later this month to address internal and external threats, dpa news agency has reported. 

The German Defense Ministry previously reported the sharpest growth in military recruitment in years, saying it is aimed at countering what Berlin describes as the “threat” from Russia. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has also called for developing the Bundeswehr into the “strongest conventional army in Europe” and increasing military spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2029. Berlin has also been considering reintroducing conscription to address what it calls a “changing security situation in Europe.”

The new security council is expected to coordinate the work of various departments and focus on analyzing information on domestic, foreign, and economic and digital security. It will convene in crisis situations, identify medium- and long-term threats, and develop strategies to respond to them, according to dpa.

The body will be chaired by Merz and will include relevant ministers, members of German security agencies, scientific experts, and representatives of other countries, the EU, and NATO. The official decision is set to be announced during the first government meeting after the parliamentary recess on August 27 in the Ministry of Defense.

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Moscow has repeatedly rejected claims it poses a threat to Europe, dismissing speculation that it plans to attack NATO countries as “nonsense.” 

Russia has also condemned NATO’s military buildup, accusing the bloc’s European members of “firmly following the path of reckless militarization” and Germany of “whipping up hysterical Russophobia across the European continent.”

Last month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Western European leaders of forgetting the lessons of history and “trying to prepare Europe for war – not some hybrid war, but a real war against Russia.” Responding to Merz’s call for Germany to once again become Europe’s leading military power, Lavrov noted that the chancellor “didn’t even choke on the word ‘again’.”