Germany will send troops to help dig trenches and build anti-tank barriers along Poland's borders with Belarus and Russia, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has announced, citing growing security threats from Moscow and diminishing confidence in United States support.
From April next year, German soldiers will take part in defensive engineering work as part of Poland's "Eastern Shield" initiative, a £2 billion national defence programme aimed at strengthening the country's eastern frontier. Tasks will include constructing trench systems, laying barbed wire and erecting tank barriers, Germany's defence ministry said.
A mid-double-digit number of German troops from the army and support units will participate in the operation in border areas near the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and Belarus.
Merz said Europe could no longer rely on the United States to guarantee its security, warning that Russia has stepped up pressure on NATO airspace through repeated drone, aircraft and balloon incursions. Speaking at a party conference on Saturday, he said the era of "Pax Americana" in Europe is effectively over and that European nations must pursue their own defence interests.
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Era of "Pax Americana" in Europe is effectively over
Security concerns have intensified after multiple Russian airspace violations over Poland, including incidents in which drones were shot down in October. Poland, which borders both Belarus and Kaliningrad, has long warned of hybrid warfare threats, including sabotage and cyber attacks.
Germany has already expanded its military presence in the region. Earlier this month, around 150 German troops and four Eurofighter jets were deployed to Malbork in northern Poland as part of NATO's air policing mission. In 2024, German forces also operated Patriot missile systems near Poland's border with Ukraine.
Germany's defence secretary, Nils Schmid, said Russia's behaviour showed Europe could not afford to slow its defence preparations, stressing the need to protect NATO's eastern flank "from the far north to the Black Sea."
Since taking office, Merz has overhauled Germany's budget rules to allow unlimited borrowing for defence spending. Berlin plans to invest more than €650 billion over the next five years, enabling Germany to meet NATO's higher defence spending targets of 3.5% of GDP.