Index

Federal Security Council (Bundessicherheitsrat – BSR)

The Federal Security Council (BSR) is a cabinet committee of the Federal Government chaired by the German Chancellor. Further members are the Head of the Federal Chancellery, the Federal Foreign Minister and the Federal Ministers of Finance, of the Interior, of Justice, of Defence, for Economic Affairs and Energy as well as for Economic Cooperation and Development. The Council’s core responsibilities include licensing arms exports and above all coordinating German security policy as well as discussing and agreeing the strategic orientation of that security policy. It consults at irregular intervals and these sessions are secret. Independently of that, the Federal Government started reporting to the German parliament (Bundestag) on final authorisation decisions of the BSR in 2014.