The German Defense Ministry has denied claims in some media that Berlin is considering buying 15 US F-35 fighter jets, Reuters reported.
The British news agency reported yesterday that a representative of the German parliament had confirmed information disseminated by the magazine "Der Spiegel" that Defense Minister Boris Pistorius intends to order 15 F-35 fighter jets from the US company "Lockheed Martin" (Lockheed Martin).
"We can confirm that there are currently no plans to purchase more F-35 fighter jets," a spokesman for the German Defense Ministry said today.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius intends to order 15 more F-35 multi-role stealth fighters from the US manufacturer "Lockheed Martin" (Lockheed Martin), a Bundestag source told Reuters, confirming information from "Spiegel" magazine.
Confidential documents prepared for consideration by the German lower house of parliament's budget committee show that the additional planes are expected to cost 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion).
Germany has already ordered 35 F-35 fighters to replace its aging 85 Panavia Tornado multirole fighters, which are due to be retired.
"Tornado" have the capacity to carry US nuclear warheads stored in Germany for use in a potential conflict.
In July, Berlin denied plans to buy 15 more F-35 fighter jets, but a significantly increased German defense budget has created more opportunities for weapons purchases. At the time, a military source told Reuters that the idea of buying 15 more F-35 aircraft had already been discussed.
Any decision to buy more F-35 aircraft could cause new tensions between Germany and France, which are at odds over the European "Future Combat Air System" (FCAS) project, of which Spain is a part, Reuters notes.