According to media reports, the German government is preparing another massive arms package for Ukraine, worth 1.4 billion euros. Der Spiegel writes this includes 50 individual items, including “an ammunition package for the Gepard anti-aircraft tank, a further 20 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, numerous reconnaissance and attack drones, as well as extensive spare parts packages for weapons systems already delivered”.

The news magazine quoted from an internal document stating that the weapons “will mostly be implemented this year and brought to bear on the battlefield.”

The draft emphasises how aggressively and feverishly the imperialist powers are working to avert a collapse of the Ukrainian armed forces at the front. The “significant increase in the combat strength of the Russian armed forces” makes further arms deliveries indispensable, Der Spiegel continues, quoting from the paper. Unlike Ukraine, the Russian army is able “to overcompensate for its personnel and material losses”.

Berlin is pursuing the insane goal of turning the tide on the battlefield. The Ukrainian armed forces need drones that are resistant to Russian jamming systems as soon as possible along with more spare parts, “otherwise there is a risk of ‘high failure rates’ in the weapons systems supplied by Germany, such as the Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzer or the Leopard main battle tanks,” according to Der Spiegel. The defence ministry hopes “that the existing repair workshops in Ukraine’s neighbouring countries can be adequately equipped at least until the end of the year”.

The new weapons package is directly linked to the imperialist powers’ plans to attack targets in the Russian heartland with missiles and cruise missiles. The Ukrainian special forces would have to “be further strengthened so that they can “destroy Russian air defences at vulnerable points” and “attack strategically important targets behind enemy lines”, continues Der Spiegel’s quote from the internal submission.

Last week, the German government had already made clear its support for the US and British plans to allow Kiev the use of NATO missiles to launch direct attacks against Russia. Among others, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius had claimed that the use of long-range NATO weapons against targets on Russian territory was covered by international law.

The latest plans underscore the central role played by Berlin in the current escalation, which increases the risk of a nuclear escalation of the war in Ukraine. Last week, the German government massively expanded its arms deliveries to Ukraine. The following new items can be seen on the official list of military support provided:

• 22 Leopard 1 battle tanks
• 22 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles (MRAP)
• 5 multipurpose Bandvagn 206 (BV206) tracked vehicles
• 1 All Terrain Warthog Tracked Carrier (lead vehicle)
• 3 Gepard anti-aircraft tanks
• 2 TRML-4D air surveillance radars
• 61,000 rounds of 155 mm artillery ammunition
• 30 VECTOR reconnaissance drones with spare parts
• 20 RQ-35 HEIDRUN reconnaissance drones
• 20 surface drones
• 6 Hornet XR drones
• BIBER armoured bridge layer with spare parts
• 1 DACHS armoured engineer vehicle with spare parts
• 6 WISENT 1 mine-clearing tanks with spare parts
• Material for explosive ordnance disposal
• 16 ground surveillance radars
• 2 AMPS self-defence systems for helicopters
• 3 border patrol vehicles
• 112 motor vehicles (lorries, minibuses, off-road vehicles)
• 8 Zetros tankers
• 10 MG3 machine guns
• 1 million rounds of small arms ammunition

Berlin has already spent more than €20 billion arming Ukraine for war. According to the German government, the funds for the “strengthening initiative” will amount to around €7.1 billion in 2024 alone. In addition, there are commitment authorisations for the following years amounting to around €6 billion. In addition, around €5 billion were spent on military support for Ukraine in 2023 and around €1.6 billion in 2022, with a further €2.9 billion in commitment appropriations.

The military budget is being continually increased in order to finance these enormous war funds. In his speech in the Bundestag (parliament) last Wednesday at the first reading of the 2025 budget, Pistorius stated: “We are doing everything we can to strengthen our defence capabilities and to continue to support Ukraine […].” However, he added, “[…] in order to continue our support as energetically as possible, we will need more funds […] in the future.”

Pistorius emphasised that the 2025 defence budget of over €75 billion (53.25 billion in the regular budget and around 22 billion from the €100 billion “special fund”) would be the highest in the history of the Federal Republic. This year, for the first time in over 30 years, Germany is spending two percent of its gross domestic product on defence.

But all this is not enough. In the face of “crises and conflicts, ladies and gentlemen, it is also clear: that will not be enough,” Pistorius called out to the parliamentary deputies. “We will have to spend more money in the future, that is, more than the 2 percent.” There was “no way around it.” Things that have been overlooked in recent years were being “caught up on at top speed now.”

Pistorius boasted that the government had “already been able to initiate 42 major procurement proposals together with parliament before the summer break”. Among other things, 105 Leopard 2 A8 battle tanks, two more class 126 frigates, Patriot air defence systems, Skyranger communication satellites and various ammunition had been ordered.

He also said that he was “working closely with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and our partners in industry to strengthen our security and defence industry and make it more resilient”. He added that big business and industry had to be “set up in such a way that they can quickly increase their production and delivery capacities in an emergency and adapt them to demand”. Here, too, he said, “speed is of the essence”.

In other words, Berlin is concerned with building a war economy and militarising society as a whole in order to make Germany “fit for war” again (in Pistorius’ words) after two catastrophic world wars in the 20th century. “A rapid and comprehensive growth and sustainability capability in an emergency are of fundamental importance,” emphasised Pistorius. His proposal for the new military conscription would create “the urgently needed basis for this”.

The coalition government, comprising the Social Democrats (SPD), Liberal Democrats (FDP) and Greens, is increasingly hated because of its policy of war and the associated social cutbacks, which are supported by all parties in the Bundestag. According to a recent Allensbach poll, only three percent of those surveyed still believe that the coalition “is particularly good for Germany.” Also, against the background of ever new mass layoffs in companies–at VW alone, 30,000 jobs are on the line–a social storm is brewing beneath the surface that must be armed with an independent socialist perspective.