Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has presented a new military strategy, confirming that the country will maintain its target of 260,000 active troops despite calls from senior military officials to increase that number in response to the growing threat from Russia.
Speaking at a press conference, Pistorius said Germany is planning for a total force of 460,000 personnel, including 200,000 reservists, according to Reuters.
“It is clear that automation and artificial intelligence will continue to shape our planning—how many soldiers we need and what qualifications they must have. Our ambition is to be the strongest conventional army in Europe,” he said.
He added that Germany is “increasing its defense capabilities in the short term, aiming for a significant expansion across all areas in the medium term,” and will strive to achieve “technological superiority” in the long term.
The strategy, also reported by Merkur.de, identifies Russia as the primary threat to the NATO alliance, including Germany itself.
