The 2016 White Paper marks a major shift for Germany.
The opposition's criticism of the Defense Ministry's plan was blunter.
"The 'white paper' is nothing but a written demand for more money for more soldiers, for more military operations and more military equipment," Germany's Left Party said in a statement. "It's a 'white paper' for armaments and war."
'The world' expects Germany to take on a greater foreign and security policy role, and that demands "a turnaround," the German defense minister said.
Germany now deploys troops to conflict zones, from the Balkans to Afghanistan and Mali, but kept out of the NATO intervention in Libya. In a non-combat role, Germany is part of the international alliance against the Islamic State group.
The Bundeswehr, seen domestically as overstretched, underfunded and beset by equipment failures, is now set to see its budget boosted and will implement its first increase in troop strength since it was a conscript army in the Cold War. Plans call for recruiting nearly 20,000 additional personnel over seven years.
http://www.dw.com/en/germany-presents-new-military-roadmap/a-19397153
