German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock are calling for significantly more money for military assistance to Ukraine in the coming year than previously planned.
In a letter to Finance Minister Christian Lindner, which was made available to dpa in Berlin, the two ministers demanded that the €697 million ($687 million) planned so far in the draft budget for 2023 be increased to €2.2 billion.
According to the letter, €2 billion was already earmarked in the current budget for Ukraine.
Lambrecht and Baerbock also demand that their Cabinet colleague increase the previously planned commitment appropriations of €100 million to €1 billion.
The European Union's legal website explains that commitment appropriations cover the total cost, in the current financial year, of the legal obligations entered into for operations to be carried out over more than one financial year.
Such an authorization would make it possible to enter into legally binding commitments to make expenditures in future years.
The previous budget estimates would reduce "the room for manoeuvre to a politically no longer justifiable minimum," Lambrecht and Baerbock warn in the letter, which is marked "Classified Information - For Official Use Only" - the lowest level of secrecy.
"The German government's ability to act in foreign and security policy and its international reputation in this conflict also depend on the provision of the authorization title in line with requirements," the ministers write.
A significant increase is needed for the German government to be able to keep its commitments for continued massive support to Ukraine, according to the letter. "Allies and partners also expect this."
The example of Ukraine shows how effectively and quickly the German government can help with the upgrading initiative when needed, the ministers said: "In this way, Germany can concretely and visibly assume the responsibility that our international partners expect of us, while at the same time protecting its own strategic interests."
