UK-Germany agreement Merz calls for alliance to tackle illegal migration

The German chancellor yesterday called for a strategic alliance between London, Paris and Berlin to tackle illegal migration and deepen defence cooperation.

- Aletha Adu

Friedrich Merz outlined the idea at a press conference with Keir Starmer in Stevenage after the signing of the Kensington treaty, the first formal UK-Germany pact since the second world war.

Signed at the V&A Museum and followed by a meeting at Downing Street, the agreement sets out plans for closer cooperation on migration, defence, trade and education. Merz said the treaty was overdue: "We had you in the European Union and we thought that was enough... but we are now learning that it's not enough, so we have to do more."

While the proposed trilateral alignment was driven by Berlin, Starmer signalled clear support for closer cooperation with Germany and France. He described the UK's relationship with Merz's government as a "statement of our ambition to work ever more closely together".

Although Merz reiterated his regret over Brexit - "I personally deplore this deeply" - his call for three-way cooperation revives elements of the 'core Europe' vision once proposed by his mentor, Wolfgang Schäuble, in the 1990s.