Germany Approves Less Military Support for Ukraine, Creating €10.6 Billion Gap
An internal document from the German Ministry of Defense shows that the government has approved approximately €10 billion less in aid to Ukraine for 2026–2027 than the ministry originally requested.
The Gaze reports on it, referring to Bild.
According to the paper, the German Defense Ministry informed the Federal Ministry of Finance in June that it needed €15.8 billion for 2026 and €12.8 billion for 2027 for military support to Ukraine. However, the government approved only €9 billion for both years, including €500 million in refunds from EU funds, which created a shortfall.
However, the government confirmed only €9 billion for both years, including €500 million in refunds from EU funds, creating a €10.6 billion aid shortfall.
As a result, planned contracts with the Ukrainian arms industry will have to be suspended and measures to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces will have to be cancelled or reduced.
The Green Party's proposal for additional aid failed, and the conservative and red coalitions opposed increasing military support, even though they had previously promised support for Kyiv.
“The Ministry of Defense sees Ukraine's self-defense needs as significantly higher than what the Ministry of Finance and the federal government as a whole ultimately approved,” says Sebastian Schäfer, budget director of the Green Party.
Officially, Germany says it will only supply Ukraine with what it needs over the next few years, and any additional military support requirements remain unknown.
In response to a request from BILD, both ministries denied any disagreements and confirmed that the government is fully committed to providing Ukraine with the necessary resources for defense.
“The figures included in the budget preparation process were jointly agreed upon by the Federal Minister of Finance and the Federal Minister of Defense, so there is complete agreement on this issue,” said a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Defense and a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Finance.
As The Gaze reported earlier, the German opposition party, the Greens, has sharply criticized Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition for refusing to allocate an additional €4.5 billion in military aid to Ukraine, calling on the government to increase funding for air defense.