German Chancellor Friedrich Merz , who has spoken out against Trump's policies, has openly questioned the country's participation in Europe's flagship Future Combat Air System (FCAS). He warned that Berlin could look for partners to design the fighter jets outside of France if key differences cannot be resolved. He said the standoff reflects fundamentally different military needs, not politics.
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“This is not a political quarrel. We have a real problem in the requirements profile. And if we cannot solve that, then we cannot support the project,” the chancellor said.
The Chancellor's remarks are the clearest public signal yet that Berlin may abandon the project if fundamental differences cannot be overcome.
The plane itself is known to be at the center of the disagreement. France wants a next-generation plane capable of carrying nuclear weapons and operating from aircraft carriers — capabilities that Germany currently does not seek.
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“The French need a next-generation aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons and operating from aircraft carriers. The Bundeswehr does not need this yet,” Politico quotes Chancellor Merz. “This disagreement raises a structural question for the program regarding whether the partners build one aircraft or separate versions. France wants to build just one and align it to its own specifications. But that is not what we need.”
Merz is currently discussing with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius whether Germany will even need a manned fighter in two decades. He says Berlin could consider alternative formats for cooperation.
“There are other countries in Europe, such as Spain, and others who are interested in discussing this issue with us,” he said, insisting that he does not see a political rift with Paris.
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The FCAS project is intended to replace the German Eurofighter and the French Rafale by around 2040 using networked systems that combine stealth aircraft, drones, and cloud-based digital warfare technologies.
It was previously reported that Kaia Kallas is preparing a list of tough conditions from the European Union for the Kremlin.