The German government has reportedly offered to contribute towards Britain’s replacement of its nuclear weapons programme, according to the Telegraph newspaper.
One source with knowledge of the talks told the paper that Germany was willing to contribute financially to maintaining Britain’s nuclear weapons systems. “We have a very strong interest that the existing nuclear powers in Europe extend their capabilities,” the source said.
The British government is in the process of replacing its four nuclear-armed submarines with the new Dreadnought class submarines, due to be operational by the 2030s. Britain is also committed to build 12 nuclear-powered submarines as part of the AUKUS treaty, also due to be operational by the 2030s. Last month, the government announced £64 billion will be spent on its nuclear weapons over the next four years.
Germany and Britain have been increasingly strengthening their military cooperation, including jointly developing Deep Precision Strike long-range missiles capable of travelling more than 2,000 kilometres – which could reach deep into Russian territory.
These UK/German talks follow the announcement of France’s ‘nuclear sharing’ arrangement with nine other European countries, including Germany, Poland, Finland and Norway. This could see French nuclear-capable fighter jets deployed to these countries. In July, Germany announced that troops will take part in the first round of nuclear exercises with France.
Germany has been undergoing a major militarisation drive since 2022. This includes raising its military spending to 5% of GDP by 2030. In 2027, 20% of its entire federal budget – €109.7 billion out of €555.4 billion – will be on military spending. It also plans to build the largest army in Europe and has been gradually changing its military service laws to pave the way for the possible reintroduction of conscription.
From next year, 5,000 German troops will be permanently stationed in Lithuania, Germany’s first permanent overseas presence since 1955. This comes as Lithuania is preparing to remove a constitutional barrier to hosting foreign military bases and potentially nuclear weapons.
Reports suggest that as part of Germany’s talks with the British government, it is considering offering to station its anti-missile systems like the US Patriot at Faslane in Coulport, Scotland, where Britain’s nuclear submarines are based – as well as other key military sites.
CND General Secretary Sophie Bolt said:
“These talks show the growing risk of nuclear weapons being used in Europe. They reflect the increasingly coordinated preparations by Britain, France and Germany for the use of nuclear weapons in a war against Russia.
“The fact that the talks are also looking at stationing German missiles at Faslane and other military bases indicate the threats of Russian retaliation in such a war. Far from protecting us, they make us all an even greater target and only further undermine British sovereignty.
“A new generation of US nuclear weapons have already been stationed at NATO bases across Europe and in Britain. The Ukraine war is already dangerously escalating, and British involvement – including the use of British-made long-range drones to attack Russian civilian infrastructure – is making that worse. Germany, France and Britain need to be working together to secure a ceasefire in this devastating war – threatening Russia with nuclear strikes will not bring that about. Instead, it will only drag us closer towards such a confrontation – and there are no winners in nuclear war. We need to remove the nuclear threat – that means urgently focusing on dialogue and diplomacy.”