German lawmakers have voted to allow a huge increase in defence and infrastructure spending - a seismic shift for the country that could reshape European defence. A two-thirds majority of Bundestag parliamentarians, required for the change, approved the vote on Tuesday.

Germany’s parliament made history Tuesday as it voted to sharply increase defense spending – by exempting it from limits on the country’s assumption of debt. Germany’s upper house, the Bundesrat, is widely expected to approve this change with a vote scheduled for Friday.

The Bundestag has voted to change the German constitution clearing the way for the new conservative-led government to spend up to €1 trillion through national debt. The move has been doubly controversial.