Germany approves €10bn purchase of American F-35 fighter jets

Berlin keen to update military hardware after year of 'neglected procurement'

A Lockheed Martin F-35 fighting jet takes part in an air show. AFP

The German parliament approved a deal to buy F-35 fighter jets produced by US defence company Lockheed Martin as part of military procurement projects worth €13 billion ($14 billion), Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht said on Wednesday.

The parliament's budget committee approved the purchase, including €10 billion for the F-35 jets as well as funds for the purchase of encrypted digital radios and assault rifles.

The military purchases are among the first to tap money from a €100 billion special fund that Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced in a major policy shift days after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.

The money is meant to bring the German military's weapons and equipment back up to standard after decades of attrition following the end of the Cold War.

Of the €100 billion fund for the armed forces, Ms Lambrecht said: “This will probably not be enough to close the gaps that emerged over the past years because we neglected procurement.”

Germany aims to buy 35 F-35 stealth fighter jets in total, including missiles and other weapons and equipment, with the first eight aircraft to be delivered in 2026.

The US jet will replace the ageing Tornado, the only German jet capable of carrying US nuclear bombs, which are stored in Germany to be used in case of a conflict.

The German air force has been flying the Tornado since the 1980s, and Berlin is planning to phase it out between 2025 and 2030.

Berlin's decision to buy the F-35 jets, which was announced in March but needed final approval by parliament, upset France.

Paris fears the deal could undercut the development of a joint Franco-German fighter jet that is supposed to be ready in the 2040s.