German ombudsman flags alarming state of military equipment

The German military is woefully under-equipped, with only about half of large pieces of equipment ready for use in operations, parliament's military commissioner said on Tuesday.

"This is totally unacceptable. In an emergency, our soldiers risk their lives in action. In return, they are entitled to the best possible and comprehensive equipment," Eva Hoegl, the parliament's military commissioner, said in a statement.

Germany announced last month it would sharply increase its spending on defence to more than 2% of its economic output in one of a series of policy shifts prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.