Germany creates centralised council to improve security planning

The German government on Wednesday approved the creation of a permanent National Security Council aimed at strengthening the country’s medium- and long-term security planning.

The new body, replacing the Federal Security Council and the Security Cabinet, delivers on a key election pledge by Chancellor Friedrich Merz. It reflects growing recognition that Germany had lost its strategic focus on security during the relative calm of the post-Cold War era.

“This is long overdue,” said Stefan Mair, head of the SWP think tank. “Its value lies less in the decisions taken than in ensuring that ministries develop a shared understanding of the security landscape.”

Germany was left unprepared for Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with gas reserves only half full, forcing Berlin to rapidly overhaul its energy system to reduce dependence on Moscow. The shock prompted deep reflection among policymakers, with many blaming successive governments for letting the armed forces shrink after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991.

The new council, based permanently at Merz’s riverside office, will be tasked both with addressing immediate threats and anticipating longer-term risks. It will be chaired by the chancellor, with the finance minister as his deputy. Permanent members will include the ministers of foreign affairs, interior, justice, economy, defence, development and digitalisation.

Additional representatives from Germany’s federal states, allied nations or the scientific community may be brought in when required.

Germany joins a growing list of countries to establish a centralised security committee modelled on the United States’ National Security Council, with Britain among the first to adopt a similar system in 2010.

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