(Bloomberg) -- Germany is planning to order more than 100 Boxer self-propelled howitzers from Franco-German defense contractor KNDS, the latest big-ticket purchase as part of a major military expansion by the ruling coalition.
The defense ministry in Berlin is aiming to get approval for the order from lawmakers in the parliamentary budget committee in the final three months of this year, according to people familiar with the plans, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information.
It will include an option for about 200 additional howitzers so that the UK and other NATO allies can potentially buy some for their armed forces, the people said. An initial tranche of around 80 units for the German Bundeswehr will cost around €2 billion ($2.2 billion), Der Spiegel magazine reported earlier on Friday, without identifying the source of its information.
Immediately after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged to expand and improve Germany’s armed forces and announced the creation of a special debt-financed fund worth €100 billion.
He also promised that Germany will meet NATO’s target of spending at least 2% of gross domestic product on defense over the longer term, even after the fund is exhausted after 2027.
Lawmakers last week approved orders for weapons and equipment worth more than €6 billion, including Leopard battle tanks, Patriot air-defense systems and ammunition.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who is trying to speed up Germany’s notoriously slow procurement process, said the approvals took the total for this year to almost €27 billion.
--With assistance from Laura Alviž.
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