European Security — 2026-06-14

Germany and Japan Accelerate Rearmament 80 Years After WWII, Spending Billions on Independent Defense Capabilities

BLUFBerlin and Tokyo are converting political will into permanent force structure, but recruitment gaps and domestic opposition risk leaving authorized budgets far ahead of deployable capability.

Germany and Japan deepened their defense relationship at the G7 in Evian, France this week, with cooperation covering drones, helicopters, cyber, and defense industry partnerships 12. Germany's 2026 defense budget totals approximately €108 billion when the special Zeitenwende fund is included, a level the New York Times reports could exceed France and Britain's combined defense spending within a few years 1. Japan's Defense Ministry set a record ¥8.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2026; Prime Minister Takaichi has deployed long-range missiles capable of reaching China in southern Japan, reversed postwar arms-export bans, and closed a $6.5 billion warship deal with Australia 12. Germany has separately asked France to assist with a nuclear deterrent 1.

Analysis
Germany's request for French nuclear deterrent assistance and Japan's southern-island missile deployments mark capability thresholds rather than budget signals, indicating both governments have moved from political posture into structural reconfiguration. The bilateral German-Japanese framework institutionalizes that shift at the industrial level, linking Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific security architecture. The binding constraint is domestic: Japanese public resistance to arms-export reversal and Germany's persistent recruitment shortfalls are already widening the gap between authorized budgets and fielded capability, and may leave the institutional framework as scaffolding without operational weight. This story rests on a single New York Times report.

2 sources

Germany and Japan Are Rearming Again, 80 Years After World War II - New York Times
Germany and Japan deepen defense ties as rearmament accelerates - Prism News