New defense minister says Germany’s military spending must keep rising

Military spending in Germany must keep rising, the country's new defense minister said on Wednesday, telling critics that the move isn’t simply a response to foreign pressure.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who also leads Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right party, told lawmakers after being sworn in as defense minister that she is committed to reaching a 2 percent spending target and that Germany must reach 1.5 percent by 2024.

She said spending needs to remain on “a reliable, constantly growing path,” AP reported.

NATO members in 2014 agreed to “aim to move toward” increasing defense spending to 2 percent of their respective GDPs by 2024, though Germany has already said it doesn’t expect to meet that goal.

Kramp-Karrenbauer said Germany is and will remain “a reliable ally,” but the 1.5 percent aim reflects “our minimum needs.”