Overview
- The cabinet approved an Interior Ministry draft to let the Bundeswehr support Länder authorities against hostile drones, with a new Paragraph 15a outlining the framework for such deployments.
- The proposal permits jammers and, only in absolute exceptions, the use of force against drones when lives or critical facilities face an immediate threat.
- Decision-making would be streamlined so the Defense Ministry can authorize deployments for drone defense without the usual interministerial sign-off.
- A national drone-defense center is slated to open in mid-December, and a new Federal Police unit starts in early December equipped with jammers, lasers and intercept drones.
- Authorities cite a sharp rise in incidents—BKA logged a low four‑digit number of overflights this year—while legal experts remain split on whether the move requires a constitutional change; Lithuania separately plans a €500 million package to counter drones and balloons.