The United Kingdom, France, Germany and other European countries will spend more than $50 billion over the next 10 years to develop long-range precision weapons in a boost to NATO's defence capabilities, the UK government announced on Wednesday.
Issued on: 09/07/2026 - 12:12
2 min Reading time
Outgoing UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was set to unveil details of the programme at the NATO summit in Ankara. Backed by a dozen European partners, the UK-led initiative "is expected to announce that allies will spend $50 billion over the next 10 years to develop deep precision strike capabilities to bolster defence and deterrence across the alliance", Downing Street said in a statement. The investment will deliver "the most advanced weapons NATO will have at its disposal in the future – with the ability to strike targets no less than 300km away and in some cases beyond 2000km, with pinpoint accuracy", it added. Such missiles have proved crucial in the Ukraine war, allowing Ukrainian forces to hit targets far from the front line. The partners, who are also expected to include Baltic nations, will work on several different missiles with a view to avoiding duplication. The weapons will be developed without the involvement of the United States. Europe’s defence dilemma: autonomy or dependence?
