Britain and France will jointly develop the next generation of deep-strike and anti-ship missiles to replace the Storm Shadow, under a renewed defence pact announced during President Macron’s state visit to the UK.
The agreement—billed as a new “Entente Industrielle”—will sustain 1,300 skilled jobs across the UK and includes a major investment in MBDA’s Storm Shadow production lines in Stevenage, supporting over 300 roles. Work will also begin on new air-to-air missiles and emerging technologies such as microwave and radiofrequency weapons.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “As close partners and NATO allies, the UK and France have a deep history of defence collaboration and today’s agreements take our partnership to the next level.” He described the deal as part of “using our shared might to advance joint capabilities while supporting thousands of UK jobs.”
Defence Secretary John Healey said the deal marked a shift in tempo. “We are committed to driving defence as an engine for growth, delivering better fighting capabilities faster,” he said. “This partnership strengthens our leadership in Europe and sends a clear signal to our adversaries that we stand stronger, together.”
Alongside missile cooperation, both governments signed a declaration on nuclear deterrence. For the first time, the UK and France have publicly stated that their independent deterrents can be coordinated in a crisis, warning that “any extreme threat to Europe would prompt a response by both nations.”
This reflects mounting concern about European security following Russia’s war in Ukraine. Under a broader update to the Lancaster House treaties, the UK and France will develop an integrated Combined Joint Force capable of commanding thousands of troops, with integrated space and cyber components.
The new missile initiative includes:
- Joint selection of Storm Shadow’s replacement
- Expansion of current Storm Shadow production
- Development of advanced air-to-air missiles
- Research into microwave weapons and AI-enhanced targeting
Missile integration into NATO’s wider air and missile defence is also on the agenda. A UK-led initiative called DIAMOND will help align disparate air defence systems across the alliance.
The new cooperation underscores the strategic aim of turning defence into an economic driver. The Ministry of Defence said it was delivering on the Strategic Defence Review’s goals of resilience, industrial strength, and NATO interoperability.
Advanced air-to-air missiles?
Is this upgrades to Meteor or it’s actual replacement, because surely that project has to start in the next few years?
It could be the long-range air-to-air missile variant of the FC/ASW as well.
Possibly, but I wouldn’t expect that minor (though very interesting) aspect of FC/ASW to get its own bullet points.
Air to surface surely
There’s three variants – the TP-15 is the air-launched stealthy version, whilst the RJ-10 has two sub-variants – a surface-launched anti-ship missile and an air-launched anti-air missile.
Interesting.. AWACS hunting from 1000KM. Hopefully the diversity of possible missions doesnt add overwhelming complexiyy, cost and delay. Get core mission version out first and add missions variants later.
I think it’s more than that.
There is a single RJ10, that can attack both ground and air targets. Because it has high speed and maneuverability anyway, and a radar seeker, it probably didn’t need much hardware change to do both roles.
The SM6 blk1A does something similar for the USN.
It’s possible as the recent India/Pakistan conflict demonstrated (with the speculation around it) that the effectiveness of very long range air to air missiles is greater than previously presumed. It would on present evidence at least (and the Chinese are crowing about) suggest that half a dozen Indian aircraft or drones on that first night were taken out without even knowing they were being targeted or time to react, when they thought they were out of range, something totally unexpected. Now it’s not clear, but those Chinese missiles, if they are the export version have a range similar to Meteor though a good bit faster, but the Chinese version is thought to have a range a good bit longer than that. Were the Pakistanis using the export or Chinese spec missiles? Either way at the very least the idea that very long range missiles, indeed ultra fast missiles too, in air to air engagements beyond the sort of range of Meteor are not really effective be it due to detection (both ways) or/and manoeuvrability issues during the final stage, is now a questionable assumption let alone by the thirties. So while Meteor has been deemed arguably the best all round missiles around, undoubtedly even longer range options do need to be considered, the US is certainly doing so. So I would think this air to air bullet point may well be addressing this increasing concern and how best to address it. Tempest and the Franco/German programme will certainly want to be able to exploit the longest range practical missiles possible, otherwise no matter how sophisticated you will be at a serious disadvantage Peer to Peer, certainly unless you are rather better stealth equipped than an enemy so you can get in closer than they can.
I believe we are already developing an upgraded Meteor with Japan. The headline upgrade will be a AESA radar seeker from Japan. If I remember rightly the upgrade also includes a new motor to further improve ranch / reach, I think that is part of our input.
Cheers CR
CR,
“…to further improve ranch/reach,”? Perhaps range/reach? If that was not the intended phrasing, I may require immediate remedial instruction. 🤔😳
In you’re referring to the JNAAM project, AFAIK it was cancelled as a result of several factors.
That’s my understanding, the new seeker was going to be a greater re design issue than deemed worthwhile. I don’t know about the mentioned engine improvements mind, whether that’s still happening, maybe this is part of the proposal in this article. This would certainly be a useful enhancement if range can be improved even further and/or speed/throttling ability.
So where does this leave the agreement between UK and Germany to develop a 2000km range missile; UK-France for ALCM , UK-Germany for ground launched?
I wondered about that. Hopefully Germany and France were each kept informed by the UK about the various negotiations. I suspect that they were as no one has had a hissy fit as a result of the various agreements. So I would suggest that the Foreign Office has managed to keep the two sets of discussions and treaties coordinated whilst maintaining a degree of confidentiality. Quite a neat trick to be fair.
Of course, hissy fits might yet emerge once projects start to emerge from the shadows 🙂
Cheers CR
Good news on the Storm Shadow production increase.
On the nuclear coordination point that is as interesting as it is impactful. The only two European nuclear power coordinating their use of their weapons is a significant step and will be noted by our adversaries, even if they play it down. It will also be noted by our allies, especially our European allies, and that is where it gets interesting. My take is that the UK and France may just have made a joint political move towards putting themselves into a position to be funded by Europe to provide a European nuclear umbrella as suggested by Germany. I wonder if the F-35A / B61 combo is part of the UK’s political maneuvering in this space..? Certainly a possibility.
The new Air-Air missile development is news to me. Anyone aware of a Franco British project in this space.!? Good news if it goes a head.
Overall, the package sounds a little like a scaled down version of AUKUS.
It seems to me that cooperating with the French works just fine so long as you can avoid Dassault being involved. Of course, most of the work is on missiles and that mean one company leading, MBDA. I do like that company. They seem to have come up with a balance between national and corporate interests that can work reasonable well. By design or accident that is one corporate move that seems to have worked to the wider benefit for a change.
I bet Ukraine will be pleased to hear we are stepping up production of Storm Shadow…
Lastly, I think the King and the Royal Family have played their role in rebuilding relations with France really rather well. I uniquely British display of ‘soft power’ deftly applied to rebuilding bridges after Brexit and very necessary in the face of Russia’s and the CRINK Axis threat. Good to see and well done to the royals.
Cheers CR
MBDA are developing ASN4G, the hypersonic replacement for ASMP. The UK is developing Tempest and has committed £15b into developing a new UK nuclear warhead. Join up the dots?
Interest points Paul,
There is definitely a pattern emerging. Finally, some action after the initial shock and scrambled response to the invasion of Ukraine I think. I wonder what China thinks of all this? Whilst an awakening of Europe will impact Russia the most in the short term, there will be implications on the strategic geopolitical level for China. Europe has huge potential if it stops squabbling and nothing pushes petty squabbling to one side like a common enemy and the CRINK Axis is now being see as a really thing in the West. The flash point could be the Arctic, like or not that impacts Europe… I note that there were calls for the UK to have icebreakers recently. Patterns…
Cheers CR
I think you and Paul are pretty close to the reality of this. We are not going to announce such a strategy years short of any actual developmental result, we hardly want to give the Russians a guide to the threat we are going to represent many years in the future while we hardly want to dangle it in front of the Americans either especially with such a transactional President do we. The US wants nuclear control the Russians want that too as it simplifies, focuses and ultimately reduces any overall threat to them. If this is the plan then this completely changes the rules of the game. Looks like we may have a wide range of missiles be they with French or German partnership that might be able to exploit indigenous warheads and become a layered umbrella for Europe as a whole, indeed anyone we are in alliance with but that’s a different question. Uk/French deterrence cooperation suddenly will develop considerably in scope by the thirties (certainly potentially) flexibility greatly increased and even if things get seriously bad the threat of other forces being equipped with these weapons creating a whole new level of potential hurt for Russia in particular. It’s the indigenous scaling potential the continent seriously needs to be taken seriously while not advertising its possibilities at least on a physical platform basis until they exist. I think a very important aspect of all this nuclear aside is that these cooperative weapon systems should be exploitable by as many platforms as possible no matter what Nation operates them. That is a real deterrent to Russian hegemony and threat expansion I think, there are a range of cards to play instead just one or two high value ones.
It makes the F-35A purchase a much more logical and potent decision too, without having to advertise it.
I am especially pleased regarding this signals. UK and France together are the cornerstone of European security. This move is the right one for our security interests are aligned. I can only hope UK will join the Vortex project, as this is the next component of nuclear deterrent. Just imagine a fleet of 6 spacecrafts patrolling at 400km. One attack ready every 15 minutes…
UK couldn’t hold Helmand province how the F are they going to secure Europe? Seems like Trident wasn’t a deterrent for Russia going into Ukraine,…..
FYI Ukraine isn’t part of NATO or the EU, why would Trident come i to play?
Should Trident have been deployed when Russia invaded Georgia too?
The nativity of this sort of irrational comment defies belief, the comparison makes no sense whatsoever, the first of many contradictions but perhaps the most damn obvious is that Helmand was hardly friendly territory was it, while the enemy, as Israel is finding in Gaza can’t easily be distinguished from the community living there. Is it really that difficult to see the obvious weakness in your argument?
Where does this new missile sit with FS/ASW?
The anti-ship missile mentioned is FC/ASW, both governments are committing to procurement of whatever missile is developed so it isn’t a new programme.
Yes it is rather like we are continuing with the programme that we are already committed to.
Another, thought has just occurred. The article refers to a “new Entente Industrielle”. I think I am right in saying that defence contracts / treaties are generally excluded from the EU economic and trade regulations, so creating bilateral defence deals with NATO allies in the EU is one way for the UK increase trade with the EU and be seen as an honest trading partner. It would fit very well with defence as an engine for growth, so we might be witnessing a defence industrial strategy in action. I certainly hope so as I have said before any confrontation between NATO and the CRINK Axis could easily trigger WW3 and that will be a war of industrial might. Need I say more.!?
Just to be clear I am not a great fan of our political leadership, I am just hoping that for once some of them might actually have stumbled upon something that works to the benefit of us all. They bl***y well need to before deterrence finally fails.
Cheers CR
Good point with the Enreinte Industrielle. Seems to me this is govt strategy to restore some of the trading benefits we lost when we left the EU. Putin and Trump see the world as 3 blocks, the US and Russia versus China and ‘the rest’. They see Europe as being shared out between greater US ( Greenland) and greater Russia ( includes cold war Easter block like Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania). So Europe is fighting for its legitimacy as the 4th world block. France and the UK are leading this fight. Metz in Germany is onside as are Italy and Poland, but UK and France must lead as UN security council permanent members and nuclear powers.
Spot on Paul. Reminds me of the old Napoleonic cartoon with the two blocks literally carving up the World cake. The Trump Putin love in was all about the US as preached by candidates in the Republican primaries about the need and the practical possibility in their minds of braking Russia from China. Totally naive but you can see why they are desperate to bring it about and Trumps simplistic mind took to it and thinks on it as a Real Estate deal. Putin of course is playing his own carrot and stick game too, and between them, both have their very one dimensional simplistic view of the World which is where they despite much else are joined at the hip. Europe in that environment is purely cannon fodder for their tactics and strategy and we better damn well understand that be it on economic as well as military terms.
I’m guessing by the fact that we are buying more stormshadow that FC/ASW won’t be ready in 2027.
MBDA was also showing a truck launcher that can fire four cruise missiles that might also be used for FC/ASW.
Truck launcher is definitely the way to go for affordable mass on cruise missiles as ships, submarines and aircraft are very expensive and we don’t need something as complicated and expensive as Typhon to fire cruise missiles.
We could also be scaling up stormshadow production so we can increase the supply to Ukraine, whilst also maintaining a healthy stock for ourselves
Yeah I think it’s fair to say we won’t be sharing future cruise with many, if any, nation for quite a few years. Better to have a legacy system around that we don’t mind getting captured.
Heard this all before. More announcements being repackaged. Still amounts to nothing purchased.
So this project is to be known as the ” Entente Industrielle”. What a surprise it has a French name.
What is the work share?
France always try to obtain an unfair workshare. They left the Euro fighter project because the other partners refuse to capitulate to French demands. The current 6th gen FCAS is at risk of going exactly the same way.
The French recently demonstrated just what type of partner they are when the suspended work and co-operation on this missile program in protest at the AUKUS agreement.
So to demonstrate what type of partners the French are, you mention AUKUS for which brits backstabbed the French. Interesting.
what you say is right!
MBDA has been an exceptional success and has enabled each nation to produce their own missiles or develop them in deeper collaboration when otherwise it just would not happen through cost and scale. Even when missiles have been predominantly those of one or the other it’s allowed joint input and purchase, what better flexibility can there be?