France joins the German-UK program to develop hypersonic missiles

According to five sources familiar with the discussions who spoke to the Financial Times, Paris has expressed interest in joining Berlin and London’s deep precision strike program, in a move that is part of a wider Franco-German defense dialogue. The three countries hope to hold a tripartite talks summit in early June.

European countries have several types of conventional missiles with a range of about 300 km or more, but these are almost exclusively air- or sea-launched. This means that European warplanes, warships or submarines would have to enter Russian waters or airspace to hit targets deep inside the country.

Moscow’s extensive use of surface-launched missiles in Ukraine – in addition to the deployment of long-range weapons in Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea – has spurred European countries to develop similar capabilities of their own, in a move they hope will help deter Russian aggression.

French officials have concluded that joining the British-German program will help “bridge the gap” between conventional and nuclear deterrence, another source familiar with the talks told the Financial Times.

Among the companies involved in the discussions are the pan-European missile manufacturer MBDA and the German-British startup Hypersonica, which in February announced that it had become the first privately funded European defense company to complete a successful hypersonic test flight. Paris is proposing that ArianeGroup, which is jointly owned by European airline group Airbus and France’s Safran, could join the program to supply rocket launchers capable of launching hypersonic weapons into the Earth’s atmosphere. Ariane currently produces the M51 ballistic missile for the French nuclear program.

French officials believe their involvement in the program could accelerate development of the new “deep strike missiles,” which Britain and Germany have said are expected to enter service early next decade and will be among the most advanced missile systems ever designed.

Macron hinted in a speech that he might be interested in joining the program of Germany and Great Britain, while mentioning the two countries in oil as partners with whom he wants to cooperate on advanced and long-range weapons. “This will give new options for managing escalation conventionally, at a time when enemies are deploying new technologies and weapons,” he said.

Germany is happy about France joining, but in London there is uneasiness among some officials about allowing the French to join the project they have been discussing with Berlin for more than 18 months. Some fear that this may be unbalanced due to the entry of a new partner with its own views on weapons, alongside its own defense industrial interests.

The three countries represent the largest economic and military powers in Europe and have a history of working together in the E3 format on issues of national security, including the war in Ukraine, the war in Iran and the war in Gaza.