German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen is mulling a complete reorganization of the country's army, which will include a stronger focus on domestic issues, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported, citing a new policy paper "Concepts for the Bundeswehr."
The document provides that Bundeswehr should equally be engaged on the international and domestic levels.
The move comes as a major shift away from the previous policy when for over ten years a major part of the German military's efforts had been focused on overseas military operations in conflict-torn regions.
The reorganization also provides for increased military spending that is supposed to be used to update military structures and equipment.
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Earlier, the German newspaper Handelsblatt had reported that the Bundeswehr intends to spend more than €450 million on the modernization of its armed forces in 2018 alone.
The move comes amid reports that the German army has been suffering from equipment and staff shortages.
For instance, on March 31, 2018, news emerged of a confidential report from the German Defense Ministry warning of the poor and "outdated" state of the Air Force's fleet of Tornado combat jets. The aircraft were said to be incapable of joining further NATO missions as they do not possess an encrypted communications system and the intelligence they gather remains vulnerable to interception.
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Previously, another German magazine had reported that over half of the German Bundeswehr's Leopard 2 tanks weren't ready for operation. It was said that the Bundeswehr has 244 tanks of this type in service, but only 95 of them are in full combat readiness.
