Change of course in defence strategy: Schularick's plan for the billions

Wrong strategy 500 billion for defence should be handled differently

2026-02-16 Source: dpa 1 min Reading Time

The Kiel economist Moritz Schularick calls for a change of course, because there is no sensible plan to achieve the goal of preserving or defending peace with the many billions.

Are we upgrading sensibly? An economist from Kiel doubts this. In his opinion, there are a number of areas where the problem lies. The planned 500 billion or so should be spent more sensibly than is currently planned. For example, there is too much focus on older systems, such as the Leopard.(Image: Bundeswehr Academy) — Are we upgrading sensibly? An economist from Kiel doubts this. In his opinion, there are a number of areas where the problem lies. The planned 500 billion or so should be spent more sensibly than is currently planned. For example, there is too much focus on older systems, such as the Leopard.
(Image: Bundeswehr Academy)

According to Moritz Schularick, President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the defence strategy must be rethought. The goals must be set in such a way that they can be linked to economic and technological opportunities. What is happening now only means that 500 billion euros will be spent by the end of the decade, but that we will end up just as dependent on the Americans as we are today. However, Schularick does see potential for the industry: "Basically, we have the chance to leapfrog an entire generation of technology, just like the Chinese did with electric cars!"

Too much money is being wasted on old military technology

Instead of buying the tanks developed in the 1990s, for which there was no money in the past 20 years, he believes it would be better to invest the funds in the next generation of defence technology. And Germany is focusing too much on old technologies, warns Schularick in this context. Up to now, 95 percent of the money has been earmarked for manned legacy systems. However, the aim must be to develop the autonomous military vehicle of the future as quickly as possible. Because you have to consider that a 25 million euro tank colossus can be destroyed today by a drone that costs perhaps 50,000 euros, as Schularick notes. The economist continues: "We have the semi-genius idea of putting a second manned system alongside the tank to protect it, although it would make more sense to invest in unmanned systems right away!"

Subscribe to the newsletter now

Don't Miss out on Our Best Content

Business E-mail

Please enter a valid mailadress.

By clicking on „Subscribe to Newsletter“ I agree to the processing and use of my data according to the consent form (please expand for details) and accept the Terms of Use. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy. The consent declaration relates, among other things, to the sending of editorial newsletters by email and to data matching for marketing purposes with selected advertising partners (e.g., LinkedIn, Google, Meta)

Date: 08.12.2025

Naturally, we always handle your personal data responsibly. Any personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. For detailed information please see our privacy policy.

Consent to the use of data for promotional purposes

I hereby consent to Vogel Communications Group GmbH & Co. KG, Max-Planck-Str. 7-9, 97082 Würzburg including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG (hereafter: Vogel Communications Group) using my e-mail address to send editorial newsletters. A list of all affiliated companies can be found here

Newsletter content may include all products and services of any companies mentioned above, including for example specialist journals and books, events and fairs as well as event-related products and services, print and digital media offers and services such as additional (editorial) newsletters, raffles, lead campaigns, market research both online and offline, specialist webportals and e-learning offers. In case my personal telephone number has also been collected, it may be used for offers of aforementioned products, for services of the companies mentioned above, and market research purposes.

Additionally, my consent also includes the processing of my email address and telephone number for data matching for marketing purposes with select advertising partners such as LinkedIn, Google, and Meta. For this, Vogel Communications Group may transmit said data in hashed form to the advertising partners who then use said data to determine whether I am also a member of the mentioned advertising partner portals. Vogel Communications Group uses this feature for the purposes of re-targeting (up-selling, cross-selling, and customer loyalty), generating so-called look-alike audiences for acquisition of new customers, and as basis for exclusion for on-going advertising campaigns. Further information can be found in section “data matching for marketing purposes”.

In case I access protected data on Internet portals of Vogel Communications Group including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG, I need to provide further data in order to register for the access to such content. In return for this free access to editorial content, my data may be used in accordance with this consent for the purposes stated here. This does not apply to data matching for marketing purposes.

Right of revocation

I understand that I can revoke my consent at will. My revocation does not change the lawfulness of data processing that was conducted based on my consent leading up to my revocation. One option to declare my revocation is to use the contact form found at https://contact.vogel.de. In case I no longer wish to receive certain newsletters, I have subscribed to, I can also click on the unsubscribe link included at the end of a newsletter. Further information regarding my right of revocation and the implementation of it as well as the consequences of my revocation can be found in the data protection declaration, section editorial newsletter.