Security's price tag

German President Joachim Gauck, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen all made headlines at the start of the year. Germany, they said, must shoulder greater responsibility in tackling global crises and be ready to resort to force should the need arise. Even then it was clear: it's not for free.

Policymakers were clear that additional Bundeswehr operations abroad and an expansion of the powers of Germany's BND foreign intelligence agency would carry a large price tag.

Months after the announcement of a new foreign policy course, it has become clear that the cost will be more than anyone estimated at the beginning of the year. The Ukraine conflict, the war against the "Islamic State" terrorist militia, the German armed forces' struggle with faulty military equipment and von der Leyen's plans to make the Bundeswehr a more attractive employer have all added large sums to country defense bill.

And future defense plans will definitely be more of a burden on the state budget as well.

"If we want to meet the obligations we've already agreed to, the defense budget will have to increase," said Karin Evers-Meyer, a member of parliament's budget committee.

Bundeswehr budget unchanged

This week, German lawmakers took another close look at the 2015 federal budget, in particular the second-largest item of expenditure: the defense budget. They agreed the Bundeswehr will have to make do with the projected total of about 32.3 billion euros ($40.2 billion) next year - despite its additional load.

Due to a lucky break, however, the defense minister didn't even have to ask for more funds. Money was freed up in the 2015 budget as a result of supply problems in various arms projects, according to parliamentarian Bartholomäus Kalb, pointing out delays in the delivery of Puma tanks, frigates and helicopters. "Of course, we can't pay for equipment we haven't received yet."

Inevitable costs

Yet future defense budgets will have to allow for just these arms projects, in addition to other items that will make an increase in the budget inevitable before too long, Kalb warns. "Apart from these major systems, there's also a backlog on equipment maintenance where we expect increased costs."

Military expenditures aren't the only line items that need to be increased in the face of Germany's new foreign policies. Before the Bundeswehr can even go on missions abroad, the government needs information on the dangers involved. This is where the BND comes in. Its remit is to provide the government with reliable information on global trouble spots.

BND will need more funds

Official BND budgetary allowance rose by 28 percent between 2008 and 2014. Next year, government funding will increase to 615 million euros - which looks like a drop in the bucket compared to the billions in the defense budget, but intelligence services don't necessarily disclose their entire capital.

The Defense Ministry is actually the BND's foremost funding source, says intelligence expert Erich Schmidt-Eenboom.

The Ministry foots the bill for at least 800 military personnel who work for the intelligence service, he said. "Then, there's the technology: Bundeswehr funds pay for quite a few BND intelligence posts, including satellite intelligence."

It's usually the BND, however, that determines how the spy satellites are used, Schmidt-Eenboom added.

In effect, the BND shifts part of its expenses to the German armed forces - another reason why the defense budget is bound to increase. On the other hand, it's the Bundeswehr that benefits most of all from information provided by the intelligence service. Former BND President Hans-Georg Wieck confirmed the existence of other funding sources - but they remain confidential.

Both Wieck and Schmidt-Eenboom were convinced that the BND will need more money in the future to keep the government more extensively up-to-date on crises.

"The days are numbered when we were able to survive on the dividends of the peace brought by the end of the Cold War," Wieck said, adding that new threats have arisen in Crimea, eastern Ukraine and the Middle East. "The Islamic State is the incarnation of the threat to the entire region," he said, adding that will surely lead to an increase in funds for the intelligence service.