BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany must meet NATO’s 2% of GDP military spending target over the long term even after a 100 billion euro ($101 billion) special fund is used up, and accept a military leadership it earlier shied away from, its defence minister said.
“Two percent of our GDP for our security…we need this money without ifs or buts, and we need it for the long run so that the effort we are making with the 100 billion is not in vain,” Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht said on Monday.
“We must prevent a situation where, in a few years, we cannot afford the maintenance of the equipment that we are purchasing now.”
($1 = 0.9814 euros)
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; editing by Matthias Williams)
