Germany's bold step to rip up its fiscal rulebook could be a game-changer for Europe's stuttering economy, reestablishing its biggest nation as the powerhouse of a lethargic bloc that has fallen behind global peers.

On Tuesday, the European Commission proposed an emergency clause allowing countries to temporarily increase their defense spending by up to 1.5 percent of GDP a year over four years, but even this, the Germans now say, is not enough.

Germany has preached fiscal conservatism for years, but suddenly it’s taking the lead on pushing for European Union reforms aimed at freeing up more money for defense spending over the long term. A German envoy to the bloc has urged the bloc to change its budget rules in the face of geopolitical circumstances,