Germany to buy US Tomahawk missiles, Chancellor Merz says

Key facts

• Germany will purchase US Tomahawk cruise missiles and Typhon launchers.
• Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced the deal, stating it closes a critical strategic defense gap.
• The agreement was finalized on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara.
• The U.S. government committed to granting approval for the procurement in August.
• Germany's current Taurus missiles have a significantly shorter range than Tomahawks.

Germany is set to acquire Tomahawk cruise missiles and ground-based Typhon launchers from the United States, a move Chancellor Friedrich Merz described as closing a critical strategic defense gap and shifting towards its own long-range strike capability. Merz announced the deal, sealed with the U.S. government on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara, stating that the meetings exceeded his expectations.

According to German government sources, Washington committed to granting approval in August for Germany to procure the missiles and corresponding ground-based Typhon launchers via a letter of intent signed on Tuesday. The specific quantities of missiles and launchers remain classified.

The planned purchase aligns with U.S. President Donald Trump's emphasis on European allies assuming greater responsibility for their own security, including through the acquisition of American weaponry. The fate of the Tomahawk supply had been uncertain following Trump's earlier announcement of a reduction in U.S. military presence in Germany, which was seen as a potential cancellation of a previous plan to deploy U.S. Tomahawk-equipped battalions to the country.

This interim solution was intended as a deterrent against Russia while European nations developed their own long-range weapons. Germany currently manufactures its own cruise missiles, the Taurus, but their range is considerably shorter, estimated at three to five times less than that of the Tomahawks.