Keir Starmer will welcome Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, to Downing Street on Thursday to sign a new bilateral treaty that promises tighter action on smuggling gangs, expanded defence exports and closer industrial ties between the UK and Germany.
The bilateral friendship and cooperation treaty marks the latest phase of Starmer’s bid to rebuild Britain’s influence in Europe – without reopening formal ties with the EU. The treaty includes a German commitment to make it illegal to facilitate unauthorised migration to the UK, closing off a key supply route used by smugglers operating from German territory.
UK officials say the new law, expected to be passed by the end of the year, will give police and prosecutors the tools to target warehouses and logistical hubs used to store small boats and engines linked to Channel crossings. Police will be able to raid warehouses, seize assets and arrest facilitators even where no migrants are present.
The treaty is expected to be focused on mutual security, including cyber and hybrid attacks, stating that “there is no strategic threat to one which would not be a strategic threat to the other”. A senior German official stressed the treaty is not intended to “replace” Nato guarantees or interfere with a future UK-EU security arrangement, but added that Brexit had left “gaps” in coordination.
The agreement will also reaffirm an earlier plan to co-develop long-range weapons systems and includes new measures to improve youth and academic mobility, such as visa-free school group travel between the UK and Germany by the end of 2025. Both governments will convene a joint expert group to explore broader mobility solutions for educational and scientific institutions.
While the war in Gaza is not on the formal agenda, officials said the fallout from Donald Trump’s latest remarks on Russia could surface in private discussions. Berlin is increasingly concerned about the shifting transatlantic landscape, particularly the prospect of a second Trump administration weakening Nato cohesion or undermining European deterrence strategy.
