Has Germany Accepted to Become the Prime Target of Russian Counter-Attacks?

According to the meager official information available, the visit of new British Defense Minister John Healey to Berlin for talks with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius involved discussion on “intensified defense cooperation”, and an agreement the exact contents of which were not disclosed. According to the Times, it includes the development of long-range, precision strike missiles with a range of 2,000 miles to be based in Germany, that are capable of hitting Russian nuclear weapons sites.

A British defense source is quoted by the British daily as saying that all “options were on the table”, while a press release of the Defence Ministry states that the joint document is the “most comprehensive joint defense declaration agreeing to closer cooperation as the first step in a deep new U.K.-German defense relationship.”

The Healey-Pistorius declaration will, together with several other agreements, make Germany the primary stationing ground for NATO missiles aimed at Russia. On the sidelines of the recent NATO summit in Washington, the government signed an agreement with Poland, Italy and France on the creation of a “European Long Strike Approach” (ELSA), envisaging the development of cruise missiles with a range of 1,000 kilometers and more. The UK has already joined this missile alliance, and Sweden and Spain are expected to do likewise.

The missile being discussed may be the new land-based cruise missile called Land Cruise Missile (LCM), which the German company MDBA said is based on its in-service Naval Cruise Missile (NCM). It “will offer the same unique capabilities as the NCM, including: metric precision at very long range; high survivability when penetrating through enemy integrated air defence systems thanks to reduced radar cross section & terrain-following capability; and high lethality against targets.”

This new missile would be in addition to the long-range missiles which the United States intends to station in Germany from 2026 on, according to a bilateral agreement signed on the sidelines of the recent NATO summit. An accompanying project is being considered in Poland.

During a naval parade in St. Petersburg on July 28, Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered the message to the Americans that his country would exit the unilateral moratorium on deploying intermediate-range weapons if the U.S. begins stationing long-range missiles in Germany. It is certainly not in the interest of the German population to make their country the primary launch site for NATO missiles that are capable of reaching Russian territory in 10 minutes, and reciprocally the primary target of Russian missiles that could also strike within 10 minutes…