Merz visits UK as Europe closes ranks in face of threats

17/7/2025 6:06

Friedrich Merz

embarks on his first trip to London as German chancellor on

Thursday to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and

sign a wide-ranging friendship treaty, as part of a broader push

to reset the EU's relationship with Britain.



Merz's day trip comes a week after a three-day state visit

by French President Emmanuel Macron, signaling greater

cooperation between Europe's three top powers at a time of

growing threats to the continent and uncertainty about their

U.S. ally.



Europe is facing trade tensions with the United States since

the return of President Donald Trump to the White House as well

as existential questions about Washington's commitment to

helping defend its European allies, including Ukraine in the

face of Russia's invasion.



"The agreement comes at a time when, as Europeans, we are

particularly challenged in terms of security policy," a German

government official said in a briefing ahead of the trip.



"Not stated in the preamble is that transatlantic matters

are also — let's put it this way — in flux. This too is part of

the context."



Germany has such friendship treaties with just a handful of

countries like France, symbolizing the closeness of their ties.



Coming nearly a decade after Britain voted to leave the

European Union, the treaty includes a clause on mutual

assistance which, "in light of the Russian war of aggression

against Ukraine, is highly significant", the official said.



It builds on a defence deal agreed last year that included

the joint development of long-range strike weapons, and comes

after France and Britain agreed last week to reinforce

cooperation over their respective nuclear arsenals.



German defence tech company Stark on Wednesday announced a

new factory in Britain, the first production facility outside of

Germany, to create AI-powered unmanned systems.



The treaty will include an agreement to jointly combat

smuggling and human trafficking, the German official said.



The British government said Germany would make a landmark

commitment to outlaw the facilitation of illegal migration to

Britain with a law change to be adopted by the end of the year.



That would give law enforcement the tools to investigate

warehouses and storage facilities used by migrant smugglers to

conceal dangerous small boats intended for illegal crossings to

Britain, it said in a statement.