Germany's 2027 budget sparks debate over record military spending and debt
April 29, 2026, 12:03 PM
Berlin. BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht has sharply criticized the federal government over its draft budget for next year.
The 2027 budget represents the largest military buildup since 1945 and "shameless debt accumulation," she told Die Welt. The planned €200 billion in new borrowing—almost entirely earmarked for weapons procurement and the "wholesale militarization of Germany"—amounts to a "wrecking ball" for the country's future.
The federal cabinet, led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU), is set to approve the budget proposal on Wednesday. It will then require parliamentary approval. Under Merz, annual interest payments have surged by €50 billion, Wagenknecht told Die Welt, calling it "pure tax money incineration." Before the election, Merz had insisted that Germany's challenges could be met without additional levies or new debt.
"Merz will go down in history as a chancellor of lies who drove this country ever deeper into decline," Wagenknecht said. "Few would have thought it possible, but Merz and Klingbeil have proven even more incompetent and clueless than their predecessors."
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