Dhe Bundestag has cleared the way for the purchase of the US F-35 fighter jet. According to participants, the Budget Committee on Wednesday approved the plan to procure 35 of the state-of-the-art combat aircraft for an amount of almost ten billion euros, including armament. The householders also gave the green light for other projects to be financed from the 100 billion euro special fund for the Bundeswehr, including the purchase of new assault rifles.
The planned procurement of the F-35 stealth jets in the USA is one of the Bundeswehr’s largest procurement projects. In doing so, she also wants to ensure a central NATO alliance obligation: nuclear sharing. It is about a NATO deterrent concept in which allies have access to US nuclear bombs and transport them in an emergency. This task has so far been taken over by the Bundeswehr’s Tornados, which, however, will have to be phased out in the coming years for reasons of age.
It was also decided to buy a new assault rifle. A good 118,000 copies of the Heckler & Koch HK416 rifle are to be procured for the G36 used to date. In addition, there are projects for new radio technology and transport capacities.
With the decisions, the traffic light coalition shows “that we are taking the next big step for the defense capability of our country” and is bringing the turning point to life, said FDP MP Karsten Klein of the AFP news agency. The Ministry of Defense has now received considerable funding for this. “These must now also be implemented in a timely manner, because in the end what counts is what the soldiers receive.”
