Germany's Military Spending Surge Fails to Resolve Infrastructure Dilemma

According to a report by Reference News on March 7, the Financial Times reported on March 3 that despite a significant increase in Germany's military spending, medical personnel at a military camp in Berlin waited 22 years for a new elevator, while a naval command post remains partially closed due to mold issues.

The report reveals these details from the German Federal Armed Forces' 2025 annual report released on March 3, where the military auditor of the German Bundestag, Henning Otte, disclosed this situation for the first time.

Otte stated that overall, since the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in 2022 triggered a significant shift in Germany's defense policy, the largest member of the European Union has signed equipment agreements worth approximately 200 billion euros. It has also initiated a campaign to promote conscription and established a new permanent brigade in Lithuania to strengthen NATO's eastern flank.

However, he also mentioned that weak infrastructure remains one of the biggest challenges, with an estimated need for about 67 billion euros in investment over the next 20 years.

Doctors stationed at the Brieselang military camp in Berlin first requested the replacement of the elevator in 2003 to transport X-ray equipment. The new elevator was finally put into use last year. Otte also noted that some rooms at the naval support command in the northern port city of Wilhelmshaven have been closed due to mold issues since 2019.

In a barracks built in the 1970s in the town of Pfreimd, Bavaria, a tank battalion is stationed, where "almost all" buildings need renovation. The new accommodation facilities originally planned to be completed in 2020 are not expected to be finished until at least 2029, which has caused "widespread dissatisfaction."

Defense Minister Pistorius has prioritized the renovation of military infrastructure and promised to expedite the administrative procedures that have hindered such improvements in the past.

However, Otte expressed concern about the scale of the work—approximately 8,000 projects—and the lengthy time required, which poses a "huge challenge" and a "heavy burden" for the armed forces.

He also expressed worries about personnel numbers. As of the end of last year, Germany had a total of 184,000 active-duty soldiers. Although there has been a slight increase in enlistment numbers, there is still a long way to go to achieve the goal of having 260,000 professional soldiers by 2035. (Translated by Wang Haifeng)