Germany has unveiled its first-ever national security strategy, marking a milestone in its effort to overhaul defence and foreign policy in the wake of Russia’s war in Ukraine and confront a range of emerging threats from cyber attacks to climate change.

The plan commits Germany to increase spending on defence to 2 per cent of its gross domestic product, though only on a “multi-annual average”. It also designates the Bundeswehr — the German armed forces — as the “cornerstone of Europe’s conventional defence”.

Russia poses “the greatest threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area”, the plan says, underscoring the profound changes in the security landscape for Europe’s largest economy since President Vladimir Putin unleashed his full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year.