Carsten Breuer to be named new head of German armed forces: Reports

BERLIN (AA) - Maj. Gen. Carsten Breuer will be appointed the new head of Germany’s armed forces, according to media reports on Tuesday.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who assumed the position in January, will make new appointments to key positions in the ministry and the armed forces, according to Spiegel magazine.

Chief of Defense Gen. Eberhard Zorn, who has been serving in this position since April 2018, will be sent to early retirement this week, according to the report.

He will be replaced by Carsten Breuer, who is currently leading the Territorial Operations Command.

Zorn drew criticism last year when he urged caution about arms deliveries to Ukraine, and also expressed doubts about the ability of the Ukrainian army to carry out a counteroffensive against Russia.

According to Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, Pistorius will also appoint his close aide Nils Hilmer as state secretary at the ministry, replacing Margaretha Sudhof.

Pistorius, after taking the office, promised major reforms to modernize the German armed forces and to make it capable of addressing new security challenges. He also promised that Berlin will step up its military support for Ukraine.