Britain close to major defence deal with EU, eyes €150 billion fund

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is close to striking a major trade deal with the EU that would allow British arms companies to sell billions of pounds of weapons to European allies.

British firms will be able to bid for the new €150 billion EU defence fund as part of Starmer’s reset with the bloc after the UK made significant concessions to Brussels on fishing rights, Caliber.Az reports, citing British media.

The prime minister will host an EU-UK summit on May 19 in London as he seeks to ease trade barriers with Brussels.

Starmer is also expected to announce a deal worth £30 million for drones produced by Syos Aerospace, a New Zealand company with a factory in Hampshire.

On a visit to a military base with Christopher Luxon, his New Zealand counterpart, Starmer is expected to announce the two countries will begin work on a new defence partnership, replacing the one signed in 2015.

Notably, Britain has been lobbying for inclusion in Security Action for Europe (Safe), a joint fund used by the EU to buy ammunition, artillery, air defences, rocket launchers and drones.

British companies such as BAE Systems and Babcock were originally excluded from the fund — while countries such as Norway, Moldova, South Korea, Japan, Albania and North Macedonia were included — because the UK has not signed a defence and security pact with Brussels.

By Khagan Isayev