Federal Cabinet to approve draft 2027 budget

Three men are standing trial after the discovery of a huge stash of illegal firearms in the western city of Remscheid last year.

The defendants, aged 60, 35 and 38, have been charged with breaching the War Weapons Control Act, according to court documents cited by German press agency dpa.

The 60-year-old is accused of storing weapons and ammunition for sale. He allegedly sold six submachine guns and a revolver to his 38-year-old co-defendant, who then allegedly resold some of the weapons together with the 35-year-old.

Police conducted raids in central Remscheid in October 2026 after undercover officers were offered weapons for sale.

They found almost 100,000 rounds of ammunition, as well as around 300 firearms, including 125 machine guns, 67 submachine guns, 51 pistols, 32 long guns, 11 revolvers and 13 anti-tank weapons.

The public prosecutor’s office said it was one of the largest discoveries of military-grade weapons in recent German history.

The prosecutor’s office has accused the 60-year-old of dealing in war weapons on a large scale, but he claims most of the arms are part of his private collection and that he had no intention of selling them.

Ten days of hearings are scheduled in Wuppertal until the end of September.

The federal Cabinet is set to approve the government’s draft for the 2027 budget on Monday.

The government plans to spend €555.4 billion ($634.8 billion) next year, significantly more than the current year’s €524.5 billion.

New borrowing is expected to total more than €200 billion, according to the draft seen by news agencies. That would be a bigger increase than initially planned.

A significant spending boost is planned for the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces. The draft includes around €109.7 billion for defense— about a third more than the 2026 budget.

Total investment will be €117.5 billion, almost €40 billion more than originally planned. This increase comes after the approval of a €500 billion fund for infrastructure and a rule change that allows ​defense spending to be excluded from debt limits.

Social Democrat leader and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil defended the planned increase in new borrowing.

“You cannot defend yourself against Putin with a balanced budget,” he told public broadcaster ARD on Sunday, referring to the Russian president and his war in Ukraine.

Budget discussions are set to commence in parliament in September after the summer recess. Final approval is expected by the end of the year.

Guten Morgen from the DW newsroom on the banks of the Rhine River in Bonn.

You join us as Germany’s Cabinet is expected to approve the first draft of the 2027 federal budget.

The draft envisages higher levels of debt and spending than originally planned, with a particular boost for defense.

Meanwhile, three men are set to stand trial over the discovery of one of Germany’s largest illegal arms caches in the western city of Remscheid.

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