Germany Seeks US Defense Tech Cooperation, Licensed Production

BERLIN — Germany wants to expand defense-industrial cooperation with the United States, including by building U.S. weapons systems or components under license in Germany, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Wednesday.

Asked whether producing American weapons in Germany would undermine Europe’s goal to become less dependent on Washington, Pistorius pushed back.

“That is indeed an apparent contradiction,” Pistorius said, before adding: “No one has said that aiming for more independence in the defense industry means being committed only to purely European systems. That is not the case, and it will not be the case in the future either.”

The comments came at a joint press conference with Chancellor Friedrich Merz and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte after a German cabinet meeting focused on security policy, days before NATO leaders gather in Ankara.

The German defense minister said Berlin needs capabilities it does not yet have — or cannot produce fast enough — as Europe races to rearm, which is why Berlin is “very interested” in producing select U.S. systems or parts of systems in Germany. This includes areas linked to the F-35 program.

“There are systems that we do not yet have, or that we do not have [in sufficient quantity], that we will need over the next 10 to 15 years,” Pistorius said. “At the same time, we know that the production capacities we have are also limited.”

Chancellor Merz framed the move as part of a broader European effort to rebalance the alliance without breaking the transatlantic link.

“We want to make NATO as a whole more European,” Merz said. “As Europeans, we are taking more responsibility in NATO. We are reducing one-sided transatlantic dependencies. And that is the right decision under all circumstances for both sides of the Atlantic.”

Rutte backed that message.

“Germany leads, and Germany delivers,” the NATO chief said, adding that next week’s summit would be “all about delivery” — on defense spending, defense production and Ukraine.

Rutte said Germany was on track to invest 3.5 percent of GDP in defense by 2029, calling it “an extraordinary achievement.”

His message to industry was blunt. “Be ready, speed up, work together. Open new production. Expand supply chains. And deliver quickly what we need for our security,” he said.

Rutte also said allies would commit in Ankara to long-term support for Kyiv, while warning against writing off Washington’s role.

“When it comes to the defense of Ukraine, the U.S. is still indispensable,” Rutte said.