Germany is seeking a rapid decision on whether it can join the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), the next-generation fighter project led by the United Kingdom, Italy and Japan. Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said in Berlin on 2 November that he would discuss possible terms with his Italian and Japanese counterparts in the coming days or weeks. No decision has been taken on German participation, and the three existing partners must agree on any entry.
At a joint press conference with UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, Pistorius stressed that timing and the conditions for joining needed to be clarified quickly. The partners had spent five years agreeing their existing arrangements, he noted, while Germany’s required combat-air capability is due in the early 2040s. Workshare and programme timing are among the issues to be explored.
Streeting said the UK would discuss Germany’s requirements and potential synergies with Italy and Japan. Berlin has begun preliminary talks, but neither the partners’ position nor any German industrial allocation has been settled. Chancellor Friedrich Merz raised possible cooperation during a recent visit to Japan, following the end of the German-French Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project after prolonged disagreements.
GCAP is intended to replace Japan’s F-2 fleet and the Eurofighters operated by the UK and Italy. Germany is assessing the programme as a possible route to a successor for its own Eurofighters.