Acquiring weaponry should follow all legal regulations
The German government has taken significant steps to modernize and accelerate arms procurement for the Bundeswehr, with the 2025 Bundeswehr Procurement Acceleration Act (Bundeswehrbeschaffungsbeschleunigungsgesetz) playing a pivotal role. This legislation introduces expedited processes, legal exceptions, and enhanced national security safeguards to overcome previous delays and bureaucratic hurdles.
The new law streamlines contract awards, allowing procurement to start before full financing is secured and removing stop-work periods triggered by legal challenges. This mitigates delays caused by bidder appeals, a common issue in the past. The law also permits excluding bidders from outside the EU if their countries lack agreements with the EU, reinforcing national security considerations by limiting procurement to trusted suppliers.
The scope of the law extends beyond traditional military equipment to include civilian supplies essential for military operations and infrastructure. This broadened focus applies until 2035 to sustain long-term procurement agility. The law aligns with broader European defense reforms under the "Defence Omnibus" initiative, raising thresholds for direct contract awards and enabling quicker, less bureaucratic procurement for smaller or innovative contracts.
This flexibility addresses urgent defense needs by allowing negotiated procedures that bypass usual EU tender publication requirements, critical for rapid replenishment of military stocks. The reforms reduce legal and procedural barriers that previously slowed acquisition, enabling faster contract execution in exceptional or urgent cases, and embedding national security controls by restricting supplier eligibility and prioritizing strategic interoperability and innovation.
Despite these advancements, cautionary voices have been raised. Kay Scheller, President of the Federal Court of Auditors, has warned about the responsible handling of financial resources in the expanded defense budget. Scheller calls for the implementation of steering and control instruments to promote effective and responsible use of financial resources. Christoph Goller, a lawyer at Gleiss Lutz in Stuttgart, advises continuing to consider procurement law in arms procurement wherever possible.
The federal government has increased the regular defense budget to over 53 billion euros by 2025, with the Bundestag approving a special fund of 100 billion euros for urgent procurements and modernizations of the Bundeswehr in 2022. Projected expenditures for defense in 2028 are 96 billion euros. However, the special fund for the Bundeswehr is expected to be depleted by the end of 2027.
Scheller cautions against an administrative "money is no object" approach in defense policy and warns of potential price increases in the defense sector due to the perception of unlimited borrowing possibilities. Goller emphasizes that procurement law primarily achieves economic efficiency through competition among providers. Efficiency, effectiveness, and control are considered essential prerequisites for funds to be effective, according to Goller and the Federal Court of Auditors.
The balance between efficiency and security is a delicate one, and the new procurement law for the Bundeswehr seeks to strike this balance by reducing legal and procedural barriers while embedding national security controls. This approach aims to ensure reliable and secure arms procurement tailored to Germany's defense imperatives.
Sports management could leverage the new procedures in arms procurement to streamline acquiring equipment for Olympic or national sports teams, capitalizing on the expedited processes and legal exceptions. This might lead to improved equipment availability, reinforcing the competitive edge of German athletes in sports.
Across various sectors, including sports and defense, enhancing procurement agility through legal reforms serves a common goal: swift access to vital resources that contribute to operational excellence and national security.
