The largest tank manufacturer in Europe warns it the German Army is “squeezed like a lemon”
The president of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann affirms that the funds destined by the Government of Germany to modernize the Bundeswehr are not enough.
Frank Haun, CEO of the largest manufacturer of armored vehicles in Europe, Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), warned that the Bundeswehr (the German Army) is not sufficiently prepared and equipped to defend itself against a possible aggression.
In recent years, the German armed forces “have squeezed themselves like a lemon,” Haun said in an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung.
“We must not believe that the remains will be a lemon again if all we do is pump 100 billion euros worth of fruit juice into it,” he said, adding that the army lacks “particularly rocket and cannon artillery” .
In this sense, he pointed out that the 100,000 million euros (105,000 million dollars) allocated by the German government to modernize the Bundeswehr are not enough.
“That can only be a first step. Then we will need 60,000 or 70,000 million a year,” he said.
Haun indicated that much of the funds would be spent on the acquisition of an aircraft that would ensure the country’s nuclear involvement.
“This is urgently needed as a deterrent. After all, Putin is threatening to use nuclear weapons, and I would take it seriously,” he said.
The remarks by the head of the tank maker come amid reports that the German government is massively scaling back its rearmament plans, due to rapidly rising inflation and a strong dollar making planned purchases more expensive.
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