A “confidential paper” reviewed by Reuters in an exclusive report shows that Germany “needs to add 100,000 active troops” to its current ranks, estimated at around 62,000. The increase is attributed to a NATO target to bolster troops amidst “the growing threat of Russian aggression.”
According to Reuters, Army Chief Alfons Mais wrote to the Chief of the Defence Staff Carsten Breuer saying, “It is imperative for the army to become sufficiently ready for war by 2029 and provide the capabilities Germany pledged (to NATO) by 2035.”
Germany plans to add 45,000 troops by 2029 and then, again, add 45,000 more in 2035. Additionally, it will add 10,000 troops for territorial defense, according to reporting from Modern Diplomacy.
Notably, Germany has not yet even met its 2018 goal of 203,000 troops, falling about 20,000 troops short of that number.
Hellbound and Down 