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Frei Proposes Strengthening BND and Updating Germany’s Security Strategy

Chancellor’s chief of staff says the BND needs expanded resources to address a shifting threat landscape

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Overview

  • Frei has urged giving the Bundesnachrichtendienst significantly more financial, technical and legal authority to respond to emerging security challenges.
  • He said Germany’s two-year-old National Security Strategy must be regularly revised to reflect evolving threats but declined to set a specific timeline.
  • Planned legal reforms aim to enable effective data exchange among the BND, Verfassungsschutz and Bundeskriminalamt to improve coordination.
  • The Union-SPD coalition agreement commits to bolstering the Verfassungsschutz and Bundeskriminalamt but does not explicitly mention the BND.
  • Union and SPD plan to evolve the existing Bundessicherheitsrat into a National Security Council at the Chancellery; Frei says it requires a deliberate, phased approach to implementation.