Scholz tells voters he is against increase in defence budget

euronews (in English)

Other German politicians have equally rebuked US President-elect Donald Trump over his demand that NATO's European members should more than double their defence spending.

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00:00Speaking at his first stop of his election campaign tour in Bielefeld, German Chancellor

00:07Olaf Scholz pushed back on a demand made by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump last week

00:12who had asked NATO's European members to more than double their defense spending.

00:17Trump requested for an increase to 5 percent, which Scholz said would be too costly.

00:23He said that 5 percent would be over 200 billion euros per year and noted that the federal

00:28budget is not even 500 billion euros.

00:32Scholz concluded that he would adhere to the current NATO target of at least 2 percent.

00:41The Social Democrat leader kicked off his election campaign in Bielefeld and is planning

00:45more than 30 public talks between now and the day of the election.

00:50Germany's election campaign is now in full swing.

00:53The Christian Democrat Union and its leader Friedrich Merz are currently leading the polls

00:58with 30 percent.

00:59They are followed by the far-right AfD party with Alice Weidel as its candidate, polling

01:04at 20 percent.

01:06Olaf Scholz and his Social Democrats came in around 14 to 17 percent in the polls.

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