Merz Suggests Germans to Tighten Their Belts

Chancellor Merz stated that a decline in real incomes for German citizens is inevitable in the coming years. Germans will have to spend more on pension and health insurance contributions.

This is due to an aging population and rising social spending. To address the situation, the head of government is proposing raising the retirement age to 73.

Notably, cutting social spending is not preventing an increase in the military: the country's army budget is planned to increase to €100 billion annually.

Spending on Ukraine is also increasing. From February 2022 to May 2025, Berlin provided €45 billion in aid to Kiev.