Germany Considers Joint Nuclear Umbrella with European Allies

(Patria) - European countries are beginning to discuss the idea of a joint nuclear umbrella to complement existing security arrangements with the US, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated yesterday, amid increasingly frequent discussions in Germany about developing its own nuclear defense.

Merz, speaking at a time when US President Donald Trump is questioning traditional alliances, said the talks are in their initial stages and no decision is imminent.

"We know that we have to make a series of strategic and military-political decisions, but now is not the time," Merz told reporters yesterday.

Germany is prohibited from developing its own nuclear weapons under the so-called "Four Plus Two" agreement, which paved the way for the country's reunification in 1990, and under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which Germany signed in 1969.

Merz said that Germany's treaty obligations do not prevent discussions about joint solutions with partners, including the United Kingdom and France, the only European powers that possess nuclear arsenals.

"These discussions are taking place. They are also not in conflict with joint nuclear deterrence with the United States," Merz asserted.

European countries have long relied on the United States for defense, including its large nuclear arsenal, but have since increased military spending, partly in response to sharp criticism from the Trump administration.

Trump unsettled European allies with his intention to take Greenland from Denmark, a NATO ally, and with a threat – later withdrawn – to impose tariffs on countries that stood in his way.

He has also suggested in the past that the US would not help protect countries that do not spend enough on their own defense.