It appeared that everything was in place to meet Germany’s medium-range defense needs: the US was to intervene until Germany acquired its own system. The plan was to deploy US Tomahawk cruise missiles in Germany. With a range of up to 2,500 kilometers (1,553 mi), they can reach Russian territory if necessary. The logic behind this plan was to prevent Moscow from attacking Germany. By comparison, Germany’s Taurus missile has a maximum range of only 500 kilometers.
The deployment of Tomahawks in 2024 was decided by former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden. Deployment was scheduled to begin this year and would serve as a stopgap measure until a comparable European weapon was developed. But that plan has now been cancelled. US President Donald Trump, who is not on good terms with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after his criticism of the war in Iran, put a halt to his predecessor’s plan – and also announced the withdrawal of at least 5,000 US troops from Germany.
What this decision of the White House means for German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is that now a gap has opened in Germany’s national defense. The US had planned to deploy not only Tomahawk cruise missiles in Germany, but also SM-6 anti-aircraft missiles and hypersonic weapons capable of traveling at several times the speed of sound.
With this stockpile of weapons, US forces would have been equipped to carry out long-range precision strikes, which Germany has so far been unable to do with its systems. The purpose of their deployment was to balance Russia’s military arsenal.
Russia has deployed “Iskander” missiles – which can be armed with nuclear warheads – to the Kaliningrad exclave, located on the Baltic Sea between Poland and Lithuania. From there they could reach Berlin and other parts of Europe. In addition, Russia has medium-range “Oreshnik” missiles in Belarus, which can also be equipped with a nuclear warhead.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is now looking for ways to close this gap quickly. And the key word here is “quickly.” Germany’s new military strategy is designed to rapidly prepare the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr, to be able to conduct “deep precision strikes” from long ranges – that is, precision strikes deep inside enemy territory. “Possible targets could include command posts, airfields, logistics hubs and weapons factories,” the German Defense Ministry website reads.
Europe is in short supply of medium-range weapons
The White House decision highlights Europe’s continued reliance on the US for essential defense capabilities. While Germany is working with European partners to develop its own medium-range weapons as part of the “European Long-Range Strike Approach” (ELSA), these weapons are not expected to be available until the mid-2030s.
Security experts say it is too late now. Military expert and political adviser Nico Lang wrote on the platform
US military reserves were destroyed in Iran
However, there is still no decision about setting up production in Germany. This is where defense contractor Rheinmetall can play a role. The Defense Department is considering purchasing expensive Tomahawk from America. However, at the moment the missiles are also in great demand by the US military: they have already fired thousands of missiles in the war with Iran, including Tomahawk cruise missiles. It is unlikely that they will have enough money left to send abroad.
But Pistorius is determined to exhaust every option. During a visit to Washington in late May, he plans to discuss Germany’s interest in purchasing the missiles. “We submitted an official request to the Americans to import, that is, to buy, Tomahawk missiles a year and a half ago. We are still waiting for a response,” the defense minister said on a German public television channel. ZDF. “But to be honest, given the current state of the world, I don’t have too much hope in that regard.”
Germany has also expressed interest in purchasing “Typhoon” missile launch systems from US defense giant Lockheed Martin. The Pentagon has also not yet responded to this request.
Another way to at least partially bridge the gap in capabilities could be long-range drones. For example, although they are less effective than Tomahawk cruise missiles, they are significantly cheaper to manufacture.
Germany plans to produce these weapons in collaboration with Ukraine. During his visit to Kiev on Monday, May 11, 2026, Pistorius stressed that the focus is on jointly developing “sophisticated unmanned systems at all ranges, especially in the deep attack zone.” They have in mind drone models with a range of up to 1,500 kilometers.
Ukraine has been defending itself against Russia’s aggression since February 2022 and has become one of the world leaders in drone warfare. It would be an interesting development if both the countries cooperate on long-range weapon systems. After all, Germany previously refused to include Taurus cruise missiles in its military aid package to Ukraine, yet now the two countries plan to cooperate on the production of weapons capable of attacking targets at greater ranges.
This article was translated from German.