Germany to study French cooperation offer on SAMP/T air-defense system

COLOGNE, Germany — German government leaders will study an offer by French President Emmanuel Macron to cooperate on the French-Italian SAMP/T air defense system, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius confirmed on Tuesday.

Pistorius’ comments amount to the first official response to a proposal by Macron at a July 17 bilateral ministerial summit to include Germany in the co-production of Europe’s only locally made long-range air defense system and alternative to the Patriot.

The German defense minister addressed the overture in a brief talk with reporters at a production plant operated by French-German-owned armored-vehicle maker KNDS in Kassel in central Germany.

Berlin is open to a role in SAMP/T “in principle,” Pistorius said, lauding the spirit of the French offer. At the same time, as a user of the U.S.-made Patriot ecosystem in the same distance and altitude defensive segment, he cautioned that eventually operating two different systems would be hard to conceive.

“On air defense, we’re arguing for European sovereignty, and we’re going to move forward on the famous SAMP/T new-generation system, with also a clear willingness from France to co-produce with Germany and our Italian partners in the new-generation SAMP/T,” Macron said at a press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Friday.

The response by Pistorius suggests longer-term cooperation on technology development for the SAMP/T system is also on the table — he cited “10 years or more” — compared with a more limited production offer. The benefits of such a scenario, in turn, would be interesting for Germany, Pistorius said.

“We should therefore take this offer seriously” and study all the relevant details, he told reporters.

An acute shortage of Patriot interceptors, partly due to the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, have European Patriot customers on edge about spares and new production. The U.S. government has signaled that it wants to fulfill hardware requirements for American forces first, relegating some international production slots to the back of the line.

The situation has amplified voices in Europe calling for more sovereign capabilities unconnected to the political and military fortunes of the United States.

Pan-European missile maker MBDA has said it plans to double production this year of the Aster air-defense interceptor used in the SAMP/T system. The firm in October 2024 conducted the first test firing of an updated Aster 30 Block 1 New Technology interceptor designed to intercept medium-range ballistic missiles and hypersonic missiles.

Italy took delivery of its first SAMP/T NG in January, equipped with a Leonardo radar with an air-surveillance instrument range of at least 300 kilometers, while France received its first upgraded system in February, equipped with a Thales Ground Fire 300 radar that has a claimed range of up to 400 kilometers.

Ukraine said on July 14 it was planning to order four SAMP/T NG systems , with France committing to delivering them as soon as possible, with progressive deployment of modules as they become available starting in 2027. One Thales GF300 radar will be deployed in Ukraine by the end of 2026 as the first component of the SAMP/T NG.

While the new air-defense systems are being produced, France agreed to send Ukraine two SAMP/T systems what will be returned upon delivery of the new-generation systems, according to Ukraine, which said it would also receive a Leonardo Kronos radar and five Thales Ground Master 400 radars.

France and Italy decided to accelerate delivery of agreed Aster 30 missiles by October this year “to address the operational urgency,” while the countries also authorized licensed production of the Aster 30 missile in Ukraine before the end of 2026, according to the Ukrainian presidential office.

Ruitenberg reported from Paris.

Sebastian Sprenger is associate editor for Europe at Defense News, reporting on the state of the defense market in the region, and on U.S.-Europe cooperation and multi-national investments in defense and global security. Previously he served as managing editor for Defense News. He is based in Cologne, Germany.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

德国科隆——德国国防部长鲍里斯·皮斯托里乌斯周二证实，德国政府领导人将研究法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙提出的在法意联合研制的SAMP/T防空系统上开展合作的提议。

皮斯托瑞斯的评论相当于对马克龙在 7 月 17 日双边部长级峰会上提出的建议的首次正式回应。该建议旨在让德国参与欧洲唯一本土制造的远程防空系统（爱国者导弹系统的替代品）的联合生产。

德国国防部长在位于德国中部卡塞尔的一家由法德合资的装甲车制造商 KNDS 运营的生产厂与记者进行了简短的谈话，谈到了这一提议。

皮斯托瑞斯表示，柏林“原则上”对参与SAMP/T项目持开放态度，并赞扬了法国的提议精神。与此同时，作为美国“爱国者”导弹系统的用户，他也指出，在同一距离和高度防御领域，同时运行两套不同的系统是难以想象的。

“在防空方面，我们主张欧洲主权，我们将继续推进著名的SAMP/T新一代系统，法国也明确表示愿意与德国和我们的意大利伙伴共同生产新一代SAMP/T系统，”马克龙周五在与德国总理弗里德里希·默茨举行的新闻发布会上表示。

皮斯托瑞斯的回应表明，双方也考虑在SAMP/T系统技术研发方面开展更长期的合作——他提到“十年或更久”——而非仅限于有限的生产合作。皮斯托瑞斯表示，这种合作模式对德国来说意义重大。

“因此，我们应该认真对待这项提议”，并研究所有相关细节，他告诉记者。

由于美国和以色列对伊朗发动战争等原因，爱国者导弹拦截器严重短缺，令欧洲的爱国者导弹用户对备件和新生产感到担忧。美国政府已表示，希望优先满足美军的硬件需求，因此将一些国际生产名额排在最后。

这种情况加剧了欧洲国内要求拥有更多与美国政治和军事命运无关的自主能力的呼声。

泛欧导弹制造商MBDA表示，计划今年将用于SAMP/T系统的Aster防空拦截导弹的产量翻一番。该公司于2024年10月进行了改进型Aster 30 Block 1新技术拦截导弹的首次试射，该导弹旨在拦截中程弹道导弹和高超音速导弹。

意大利于 1 月份接收了第一套 SAMP/T NG 系统，该系统配备了 Leonardo 雷达，空中监视仪器的探测距离至少为 300 公里；而法国于 2 月份接收了第一套升级后的系统，该系统配备了 Thales Ground Fire 300 雷达，据称探测距离可达 400 公里。

乌克兰于7月14日表示，计划订购四套SAMP/T NG系统，法国承诺尽快交付，并从2027年开始逐步部署各个模块。到2026年底，一套泰雷兹GF300雷达将作为SAMP/T NG的首个组件部署在乌克兰。

在新的防空系统生产期间，法国同意向乌克兰提供两套 SAMP/T 系统，乌克兰方面表示，这些系统将在新一代系统交付后归还。乌克兰方面还表示，还将收到一部 Leonardo Kronos 雷达和五部 Thales Ground Master 400 雷达。

据乌克兰总统办公室称，法国和意大利决定加快交付已商定的“紫菀30”导弹，争取在今年10月前交付完毕，“以应对作战的紧迫性”。同时，两国还授权乌克兰在2026年底前获得“紫菀30”导弹的许可生产。

鲁伊滕贝格从巴黎报道。

塞巴斯蒂安·斯普伦格是《防务新闻》欧洲版副主编，负责报道该地区的防务市场状况，以及美欧在防务和全球安全领域的合作和多国投资。此前，他曾担任《防务新闻》执行主编。他现居德国科隆。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。