NATO Military Committee: Carsten Breuer takes over as chairman

dpa Germany's highest-ranking soldier becomes the new chairman of the NATO military committee. Inspector General Carsten Breuer was elected as the successor to Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone at a meeting of the body in Copenhagen, NATO announced.

Breuer defeated Canadian Chief of Staff Jennie Carignan, who, if elected, would have become the first woman to head the Military Committee. He is scheduled to take over from the current incumbent in July 2027.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) said about Breuer's election that Germany was taking responsibility in the alliance in challenging times. “We are grateful for the trust that our allies place in us,” wrote Merz on X.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) confirmed that Breuer had strategic foresight. He made a crucial contribution to reorganizing the Bundeswehr.

“In the alliance, it is more important than ever to have a clear course: the threat, especially from Russia, is increasing,” said Pistorius. And: “At the same time, the European partners will focus even more intensively on their own security and conventional deterrence, while the USA also expands its focus to other regions.”

Breuer thanked “for the trust placed in me”. "The support of the chiefs of general staff of our NATO allies means a lot to me. There are big tasks ahead of us in the alliance - for our security and peace in Europe and beyond," he told the German Press Agency.

The chairman of the Military Committee is considered one of NATO's most influential military officers, alongside the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe (Saceur). He is the most important military advisor to the Secretary General and at the same time the link through which the joint recommendations of the chiefs of general staff of all NATO member states are presented to the political decision-making bodies. In addition, instructions and guidelines from the Military Committee are passed on to NATO's strategic commanders and the Director General of the International Military Staff.

The last German to hold the post so far was General Harald Kujat. He had also previously been Inspector General of the Bundeswehr and served as Chairman of the Military Committee from July 2002 to June 2005.

The election of General Breuer is also seen in the alliance as a sign of appreciation for the fact that the Federal Republic has recently made a significant contribution to increasing European defense capabilities. According to NATO figures, Germany is currently clearly in first place in Europe when it comes to defense spending with around 125 billion euros, and as of this year it has occupied more top positions in the alliance's military command structure than the USA.

All of this is intended to enable the United States to use freed-up resources and forces to massively expand its deterrence in the Indo-Pacific. The USA no longer sees Russia, but rather China, as the main challenge to its own security interests.

Breuer has been Inspector General since March 2023 and is therefore militarily responsible for the reorganization and strengthening of the Bundeswehr, which was initiated after the “turning point” - triggered by the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

Before his appointment as Inspector General, Breuer was commander of the Bundeswehr's Territorial Command, which he had set up himself. He also previously gained notoriety as head of the Corona crisis team in the Chancellery.

Breuer joined the Bundeswehr in 1984. When he began his service in an anti-aircraft regiment, the confrontation between East and West, the Cold War, was raging in Europe. At a young age, Breuer was a specialist instructor for the army air defense unit, which was later disbanded.

In military careers for top positions, tasks as a commander alternate with political assignments such as in the Ministry of Defense. In 2015 and 2016, Breuer was project officer for the white paper on the future of the Bundeswehr.

After Breuer's election, Pistorius will have to decide in the coming months who he will put at the military head of the Bundeswehr instead.

In earlier years, the then Air Force Inspector, Ingo Gerhartz, was mentioned as a possible successor. Since June 2025, he has been commander of NATO's operational headquarters in Brunssum, the Netherlands, responsible for NATO's eastern flank. Germany is responsible to its allies for the general and the filling of the post.

Lieutenant General Christian Freuding, the inspector of the army, is considered a possible candidate for the position of inspector general next year. He is driving forward the modernization of the German land forces and was previously chief coordinator of Germany's military aid to Ukraine.