Germany's budget is in trouble. Will the debt rule be broken to help Ukraine?

The resource allocated to Ukraine from the budget of the German Ministry of Development decreased from 670 million euros in 2022 and 750 million euros in 2023 to approximately 330 million euros this year.

Stating that the current situation does not result from a political choice, Minister Alabali Radovan said, "At this stage, the situation is not a political decision; we are directly faced with heavy cuts and it will now be impossible to continue the aid. Moreover, the situation becomes even more difficult when this money has been wisely invested for the stability of Ukraine and Europe."

Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party led by Prime Minister Friedrich Merz, supports the request of Alabali Radovan, a member of the government's junior partner, the Social Democratic Party (SPD), to relax the debt brake.

In contrast, some politicians within the CDU oppose introducing new exceptions to the borrowing limit, except for previously approved cases such as defense spending.

Emphasizing that the Ministry carries out long-term projects and that a significant part of the budget has been allocated in advance, Alabali Radovan reminded that they have to pay attention to other crisis areas.

Alabali Radovan said, "I prioritize support to Ukraine, but there are many other crises and conflicts. Since we work long-term, most of our budget has already been committed. Therefore, the cuts hit crisis instruments the most, because these instruments operate with flexible funds that have not yet been tied up."

Alabali Radovan stated that he shared Prime Minister Merz's call to increase support to other countries and said, "We are the strongest supporters; I believe that other countries can and should contribute more."