German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has ruled out Germany acquiring nuclear weapons amid the debate over a European nuclear deterrent, DPA reported.
"I don't want Germany to think about acquiring its own independent nuclear arsenal," Merz said in an episode of the political podcast "Change of Power", which will be broadcast today.
The chancellor pointed to existing treaties in which Germany has committed to refraining from acquiring nuclear weapons, including the "Two Plus Four" Agreement, which paved the way for German reunification in 1990, and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty weapons.
However, Merz said he could imagine making German military aircraft available for the possible deployment of French or British nuclear weapons.
German Tornado fighter jets are already stationed at Büchel air base in western Germany for the potential deployment of American nuclear weapons. "Theoretically, it would also be possible to apply this to British and French nuclear weapons," Merz said.
At the Munich Security Conference last week, the chancellor said he was in talks with French President Emmanuel Macron about a joint European deterrence framework.
Macron proposed such discussions to Germany and other EU partners in 2020 during US President Donald Trump's first term. His proposal received little support from then-Chancellor Angela Merkel and her successor Olaf Scholz before Merz accepted the proposal.
NATO's nuclear deterrent is currently based primarily on US nuclear weapons, of which about 100 remain stationed in Europe, including at Büchel.