Rishi Sunak

Germany and the United Kingdom, two of the main European countries supporting Ukraine in defense against Russian aggression, have agreed to strengthen their defense cooperation to support the Kyiv army until as necessary. The two countries have also pledged to jointly develop a series of military projects, such as the creation of a new armored combat vehicle and the European Sky Shield air defense initiative.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, during his first official visit to Berlin since taking office a year and a half ago, highlighted the importance of this cooperation by saying: “We have taken more responsibility for our general security and today we are going even further. . “We are opening a new chapter in the security relationship between our two countries.” Sunak explained that the aim was to establish a “new framework” for defense cooperation and an immediate expansion in industrial cooperation, including joint construction and optimization of the RCH 155 remote armored vehicle.

The publication of this project shows the United Kingdom’s interest in strengthening cooperation with its European partners again, especially after Brexit, which marked a break in defense cooperation. One of the most famous joint projects at the moment is the production of the Boxer armored vehicle, developed by a German defense company and of which more than 600 units have been produced for the British Army.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also highlighted the importance of this cooperation, saying that “Germany and the United Kingdom contribute significantly to the European defense industrial base, and we want to continue this continue to strengthen and expand it.” The two leaders, who know each other from their time as finance ministers, emphasized that the war in Ukraine has changed the geopolitical landscape and that increasing defense is a priority, regardless of the government in the United States.

In addition, in line with these efforts, Sunak announced during his visit to Warsaw that he will increase UK defense spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2030, representing spending of around €90 billion annually by the end of the decade. For its part, Germany is trying to meet the defense spending target of 2% of GDP set by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) this year for the first time since 1992.

Sunak arrived in Berlin amid controversy over his plan to deport migrants to Rwanda, which was recently approved by the British Parliament. However, the British Prime Minister preferred not to comment on this issue and simply pointed out that migration management is a common challenge across the European continent. Scholz, for his part, said that work is also being done in Germany to streamline the management of irregular migration in the country. @mundiario