Germany and France fail to resolve deadlock over the Future Combat Air System, leaving the major European defence project in limbo.
BERLIN: Germany has postponed a crucial decision on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme.
A government spokesman confirmed on Wednesday that efforts to break the 2025 deadlock over the new European fighter jet had been unsuccessful.
The FCAS programme was launched in 2017 to replace France’s Rafale and the Eurofighter jets used by Germany and Spain.
The joint development scheme has stalled in recent months due to disagreements between France’s Dassault Aviation and Airbus, which represents German and Spanish interests.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had previously pledged a decision by the end of the year.
The spokesman said Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron had been unable to discuss the project recently due to “the comprehensive Franco-German agenda on foreign and security policy issues”.
No new date for a decision was provided.
The future of the FCAS project has looked increasingly uncertain amid the tensions.
In September, both Dassault and a French government official said the country was prepared to develop the project alone if negotiations failed.
In mid-December, a prominent German lawmaker from Merz’s conservatives also called for a split.
“France and Germany don’t necessarily need the same aircraft,” said MP Volker Mayer-Lay.
He argued that France should build its own fighter jet, while Germany and Spain seek new partners for a separate aircraft.
