Chancellor Friedrich Merz has addressed parliament ahead of a NATO summit that he said would be historic. Merz promised that Germany would do its fair share as part of the alliance to counter the threat from Russia.
Chancellor Friedrich Merzsaid Tuesday that Germany is once again a reliable global actor and promised it would show leadership through its alliances.
The German leader was delivering a key foreign policy speech in parliament just hours before departing for aNATO summit in The Hague.
Merz said Germany and its NATO allies were convinced that Russia in particular was threatening the security and freedom of the European and Atlantic region "actively and aggressively."
Germany, he emphasized, could help shape the development of the world in the coming years through its alliances.
"We must together be so strong that no one can dare to attack us," he said.
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"Therefore, it is a historical situation we find ourselves in. In this situation, Germany must also take responsibility and we are doing that," the chancellor said.
"We will perform and assume a fair share of alliance work," he said, adding that this meant that Germany would "fulfill the capability targets we agree on with our alliance partners."
"We have shown our international partners: You can rely on us," said Merz, whose conservative-led government took office last month.
"This new decisiveness is being registered in the world, and warmly welcomed by our partners and friends."
The speech came ahead of two high-level meetings this week: the NATO summit in the Netherlands and an EU summit in Brussels.
Merz said Germany must help shape global developments in the years ahead with its allies, but noted that doing so requires two essential qualities: "We need both strength and reliability, both internally and externally."
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Merz's speech came as Germany's government pledged Tuesday to make major new investments through record borrowing.
His Cabinet presented itsbudget plans aimed at reviving the economy and strengthening the militaryto Germany's lower house, the Bundestag.
The plans include the long-delayed 2025 draft budget as well as a financial framework extending through 2029. The budget process was postponed following the collapse of the previous government last year.
Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah