UK, Germany sign friendship treaty to boost ties, counter Russian threat
The treaty on friendship and bilateral cooperation was signed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in London on Thursday.
The pact identifies the Russian aggression as "the most significant and direct threat" to the security of Britain and Germany.
It says the two countries "affirm as close Allies their deep commitment to each other's defence." It adds that the two "shall assist one another, including by military means, in case of an armed attack on the other."
The treaty also says Britain and Germany shall work to strengthen resilience and build capacity and capability against malicious cyber activity.
Starmer told a news conference that his country and Germany are "side by side, delivering growth and security." He added that the treaty "is an expression of our shared aims and values."
Merz stressed the importance of the pact, saying the two countries have never had such a treaty over the past decades.
In October last year, Britain and Germany signed a defense treaty to fortify their deterrence against Russia. The latest pact between the two countries is an apparent effort to tighten their solidarity through a treaty that covers a broader range of fields.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
7 hours ago
- Japan Times
'Trump before Trump': Orban's illiberal model on show
At the American embassy in Budapest, the atmosphere has changed since U.S. President Donald Trump was sworn in six months ago. "No more public scoldings. No more moralizing from podiums," the new charge d'affaires Robert Palladino told guests, including several Hungarian ministers, at this month's U.S. Independence Day celebration. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban wants his country to serve as a laboratory of far-right ideas and an inspiration for Trump, whom the nationalist describes as "a great friend," and is hoping for a U.S. presidential visit. Self-touted as a "Trump before Trump," Orban has transformed the national life of Hungary, an EU member and home to 9.5 million people, during his 15-year rule. In his drive to build what he has called an "illiberal state," he has been accused of silencing critical voices from the judiciary, academia, media and civil society, and of restricting minority rights. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden once accused him of "looking for dictatorship." 'Open-air museum' "Hungary is like an open-air museum, whose leader appears to have proved it is possible to bring back the so-called good old days," said Zsolt Enyedi, a senior democracy researcher at Vienna-based Central European University. "Illiberal ideas have been institutionalized," he added. Both Trump and Orban target minorities, including the LGBTQ+ community. "Orban realized there was not a strong public resistance to incitation against vulnerable groups ... so he leveraged these to campaign," Enyedi said. Orban at the European Council in Brussels on June 26 | AFP-JIJI "Similarly, Trump deports people without going through due process as American conventions would dictate," the researcher added. U.S. author Rod Dreher, who lives in Budapest and promotes the "Hungarian model" in the United States, praises the two leaders' common fight against the "ideological left." "It does matter a lot to ordinary Americans when their little children are being sent to schools and being taught about transgenderism," the 58-year-old said. 'Strongman' tactics In a recent discussion hosted by the Hungarian-government-financed Danube Institute, where he works, Dreher cited the example of the University of Pennsylvania, which agreed to ban biological males from its women's sports teams, settling a federal civil rights complaint. "Pure Orban," Dreher says. "We would not have gotten that out of a normie Republican president. "When institutions that should be neutral are so far to the left, it takes a strongman like Trump just to try to bring them back to the center." The Trump administration has threatened to cut funding to prestigious universities like Harvard and Columbia, criticized federal judges who suspend its decisions and is in open conflict with major media outlets. By limiting access to certain journalists and replacing them with fringe media loyal to his cause, Trump is very similar to Orban, according to Enyedi. "Both make it clear that they are acting out of revenge," he said. This week, the CBS network announced the end of Stephen Colbert's "The Late Show," long a staple of late night U.S. television, saying it was "purely a financial decision." It came days after the comedian blasted parent company Paramount's $16 million settlement with Trump as "a big fat bribe." But, for now, dissenting voices remain much stronger in the United States than in Hungary. While Orban has not yet been invited to the White House in Trump's current term, envoy Palladino foresees that a visit by the U.S. president to Budapest is "hopefully not too far off." Such a "historic visit" would, he said, be "a reflection of real alignment between two sovereign nations that believe in tradition, strength, and identity." "But that moment won't happen on its own. It will require vision, effort, and commitment — on both sides of the Atlantic."
Japan Times
8 hours ago
- Japan Times
U.K. urges ‘50-day drive' to arm Ukraine and raise pressure on Putin
Britain and Germany are set to pledge new air defense systems for Ukraine as the U.K. government pushes for a "50-day drive' to arm Kyiv and bring Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. Defense Secretary John Healey will make the announcement on Monday when he chairs a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group along with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius, according to a statement released by the U.K. Ministry of Defense. The ministry confirmed the U.K. had sent £150 million ($201 million) of air defense and artillery to Ukraine in the past two months, and said further commitments will be announced during the contact group meeting. They include an agreement between Britain and Germany to procure more air defense ammunition, using €170 million ($198 million) of funding from Berlin.
NHK
9 hours ago
- NHK
Iran to hold nuclear talks with three European nations on Friday
Iranian state television reported on Monday that Tehran is scheduled to hold talks on its nuclear development program with Britain, France and Germany. It said the talks will be held in Istanbul, Turkey, on Friday. Britain, France and Germany are moving to trigger the "snapback" mechanism that automatically reimposes UN Security Council sanctions that were lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal. This is apparently aimed at pressing Tehran to return to negotiations with the United States that have been suspended since Israel and the US attacked nuclear facilities in Iran last month. The Iranian government appears to be seeking to fend off resumption of the UN sanctions by agreeing to talk with the three European nations. However, it remains adamant that it will not make any concessions on its nuclear program.
