The German armed forces—the Bundeswehr—will not be able to fully close its existing gaps by the year 2030, said German defense minister Boris Pistorius, commenting on Berlin's intention to improve its armed forces ever since the ongoing situation over Ukraine.

"We all know that the existing gaps cannot be completely closed by 2030. It will take years. Everyone understands that," Pistorius said in an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

The Bundeswehr, already underinvested for decades after the end of the Cold War, is in even worse shape than a year ago because weapons and ammunition transferred to Ukraine have largely not yet been replaced by new ones, experts say.

Also, Pistorius dismissed the reports about the further supplies of weapons to Ukraine from the Bundeswehr reserves, in addition to the declared obligations.

"I say directly: we, like other countries, have limited resources. As the federal defense minister, I cannot give everything," he said.

The German defense minister noted that the increase of the defense budget in order to reach the 2% of the national production proposed by NATO, compared to the current 1.5%, is his main priority.

"If it is done at the end of the [legislative] period, then I will be satisfied," he added.

In addition, Germany is planning a naval mission to the Indo-Pacific region next year and is intensifying partnership with key countries in the region: Japan, Australia, India, Indonesia, South Korea and Singapore, Pistorius said, declaring that Europe's free movement in those seas is "extremely limited."