Germany adopted the National Security Strategy (NSS) for the first time. Chancellor Olaf Scholz presented it at a press conference on June 14, writes Der Spiegel.
"For the first time in the history of our country, we have developed a National Security Strategy," Scholz noted.
Germanyʼs political security environment has changed significantly over the past year and a half, Scholz said, referring to Russiaʼs war against Ukraine and attacks on the Nord Stream pipeline.
"Security in the 21st century is more than military action and diplomacy. Russiaʼs aggressive war against Ukraine showed that peace and freedom do not fall from the sky. Germanyʼs security challenges permeate all spheres of life. This applies, for example, to medicines, as well as cyberspace and water purity," the Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Burbok noted.
According to the Security Strategy, external and internal threats should be considered together in the future. In addition to possible military dangers, this also includes cyber attacks, possible attacks on critical infrastructure and climate change.
The National Security Strategy states: "Todayʼs Russia is the greatest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic region in the near future."
The concept consists of three main points:
- Defence: the goal of spending 2% of GDP on defense is confirmed.
- Resilience: the basic free-democratic order must be better protected against illegitimate outside influence. Dependencies, for example, in the supply of raw materials, should be reduced.
- Persistence: quick action should help avoid crises or mitigate their consequences. This applies to issues of climate, biodiversity, ecosystems and food security.
In the field of defense capabilities, there will be measures such as enhanced protection against espionage and sabotage, harmonization of European arms export controls, and expansion of cyber and space capabilities.
- The American newspaper The Washington Post, citing intelligence, wrote that Russia is trying to unite far-right and far-left parties in Germany in order to weaken support for Ukraine and convince Germans that anti-Russian sanctions are harmful to them. The documents show for the first time direct attempts by Russia to interfere in German politics.