German States Urge Strengthening of European Space Policy
The governments of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Bremen have jointly called for a significant boost to Germany’s and Europe’s space policy. The states are demanding a minimum of two billion euros per year as Germany’s contribution to the European Space Agency’s (ESA) budget for the years 2026 to 2028, as well as an increase in the national space program to one billion euros annually.
Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder emphasized the importance of space research as a future technology in Berlin on Thursday. “Germany must be at the forefront of the future theme of space research internationally” he said at the presentation of the recommendations for the ESA Ministerial Conference 2025. Bavaria is already investing “massively” in research and infrastructure, such as the establishment of the largest European faculty for aeronautics and space at the Technical University of Munich and the planned moon control center in Oberpfaffenhofen.
Baden-Württemberg’s Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann said, “Germany can and must, in close cooperation with its European partners, make a crucial contribution to the technological peak performance in space research. For this, we need to strengthen the European Space Agency further. This requires a clear signal from the federal government and sufficient funds in the national space budget.”
Bremen’s Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte stated, “The ESA is a European future object, founded to secure Europe’s place in space. Today, it is particularly important, in the face of the international situation, to maintain and expand this place. This is not only of decisive strategic importance for the economic location of Europe, but also a question of European security and sovereignty.”
The three states consider space research a key area for innovation, economic competitiveness and technological sovereignty in Europe. They place particular emphasis on the fields of Earth observation, telecommunications, navigation and space security. The demands are directed at the federal government ahead of the upcoming ESA Ministerial Conference, which will take place in Bremen in 2025.