Andy Burnham: Germany and Great Britain want to strengthen cyber defenses

Germany and Great Britain want to strengthen cooperation in combating cyber attacks, sabotage and other hybrid threats. The British government announced this before British Prime Minister Andy Burnham's visit to Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) in Berlin. There, among other things, the two want to put the German-British friendship treaty of 2025 into effect.

Both countries "commit to a partnership to counter hybrid threats to counter hostile activities that threaten the security and prosperity of our two countries," said the British government. "The hybrid threat from our adversaries - especially Russia - extends across Europe and beyond and threatens our common security."

The two countries want to weaken “hostile actors” through information exchange and coordination in monitoring, deterring and eliminating threats. Burnham said, according to the statement: “Attacks on our infrastructure, our businesses and our democracies are not a distant threat. They reach into people’s homes and workplaces and are designed to make us weaker and more divided.”

New basis for German-British relations

The ratification documents for the so-called Kensington Treaty will be exchanged at a ceremony today. With the agreement, the two countries are putting their relations on a new footing six years after Great Britain left the European Union. The 27-page document was signed during Merz's first visit to Great Britain as chancellor in July last year.

The contract is accompanied by an action plan. This contains 17 points for deeper cooperation in the areas of science, technology, defense, security and growth.