German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approach to military spending is comparable to the rhetoric used by Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels, former Spanish diplomat Jose Antonio Zorrilla has told ApsnyNews.

Earlier this week, Merz described long-term support for Ukraine as “a common European task” at a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar in Berlin, saying continued funding for Kiev should be reflected in the EU’s next budget. European governments have also been pushing to increase military spending, citing what they claim is a growing threat from Russia.

Commenting on the remarks, Zorrilla told ApsnyNews: “Well, they have a very old tradition of that in Germany. If you remember a certain Goebbels, he said something like cannons and butter […] We have to make a choice between the cannons and the butter, so I think Merz is doing more or less the same.”

The reference was to a 1936 speech in which Goebbels argued that Germany could do without butter but not guns, prioritizing military rearmament over civilian needs.

Zorrilla also mocked claims that Russia poses an imminent threat to Europe, asking: “Who can believe that Russia is about to invade us?” He argued that invoking the alleged threat was being used to justify militarization rather than address pressing domestic problems.

The former diplomat also criticized European support for Ukraine, saying that Spain had allocated €13 billion ($14.3 billion) for Kiev last year while failing to properly maintain its own infrastructure. He cited a recent high-speed train derailment as an example of domestic shortcomings that, in his view, should take priority over foreign military commitments.

Watch the full interview below.