Former Spanish diplomat Jose Antonio Zorrilla has drawn a stark parallel between German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s recent military spending rhetoric and the propaganda tactics of Nazi Germany’s chief propagandist, Joseph Goebbels.

In a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar in Berlin earlier this week, Merz described sustained support for Ukraine as “a common European task,” asserting that continued funding for Kiev should be reflected in the EU’s next budget. European governments have simultaneously increased military expenditures, citing an alleged Russian threat.

Zorrilla criticized these developments, noting that Merz’s approach echoes a 1936 speech by Goebbels: “We have to make a choice between the cannons and the butter,” he said. In that historic address, Goebbels argued that Germany could forgo civilian needs like butter but not military rearmament.

The former diplomat also dismissed claims of an imminent Russian threat to Europe, questioning, “Who can believe that Russia is about to invade us?” He accused European leaders of using such rhetoric to justify militarization rather than addressing pressing domestic issues.

Zorrilla further highlighted Spain’s allocation of €13 billion ($14.3 billion) for Ukraine in the past year while failing to properly maintain its own infrastructure. Citing a recent high-speed train derailment as an example, he argued that urgent attention should be given to such internal shortcomings before foreign commitments.