German Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said on Sunday his ministry would not be able to reach the savings goal initially agreed by the cabinet, despite a comprehensive overhaul of the military, according to Reuters. Guttenberg has spearheaded a plan to cut the size of Germany's armed forces by over a quarter as part of the country's biggest post-war defence cuts, even as it becomes increasingly active in international military missions. In an interview with Welt am Sonntag, however, he said even these radical measures would not be enough to reach the government's goal of cuts in defence spending of 8.3 billion euros by 2014. "It is widely known that even with this minimal number (of soldiers), we could save but we won't be able to reach the original savings goal," Guttenberg was cited as saying. Guttenberg said he expected this would be taken into account in budget discussions over coming weeks: "They will take place, as usual, on the basis of realities." Yet Guttenberg's admission could spark tensions in Chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-right government if other ministries are forced to take on the burden of further cuts. Already in December, coalition budget experts have pressured the minister to stick to the agreed savings goal. "The agreed financial plan is still valid -- also for the Defence Minister," said Otto Fricke, budget expert for Merkel's junior Free Democrat coalition partners ."A minister cannot simply step out of line according to his whim." Berlin resolved in 2010 to find 80 billion euros worth of budgetary savings in the next four years, but pressure to consolidate the budget has arguably eased somewhat as the Europe's largest economy has recovered from recession. The parliamentary budget committee will this Wednesday quiz Guttenberg about how he hopes to achieve his savings target and the financial impact of the Bundeswehr reform. Guttenberg has announced plans to slim down the military to around 185,000 troops from 250,000 and end national service. His acknowledgement, however, that he will not be able to achieve his savings target could cast a slight shadow over his usually spotless image. The 39-year-old aristocratic minister has been singled out by media as a potential successor to Merkel and consistently tops surveys ranking Germany's most popular politicians. Guttenberg admitted the push to save money gave the necessary boost to push through a reform of the military. "We needed a loud wake-up call to prove the need for reform," he said. "If we had just had a political debate about security, I am not sure, how much the future of the Bundeswehr would have been discussed beyond expert groups."
