Latest news with #StormShadow
Axios
16-07-2025
- Business
- Axios
U.K. and France recommit to Storm Shadow missile and its successor
The U.K. and France committed to buying additional Storm Shadow cruise missiles, wielded in the Russia-Ukraine war, while also pursuing a more sophisticated replacement. Why it matters: It's a sign of deepening relations between London and Paris, where the missile is known as SCALP. The deal falls under an updated Lancaster House Agreement, which details military and defense-tech cooperation between the two governments. The latest: Storm Shadow production lines will be upgraded, supporting 300-plus jobs at multinational contractor MBDA, while the next phase of a "project for both deep strike and anti-ship missiles" moves forward, according to a joint announcement. British and French defense chiefs John Healey and Sébastien Lecornu recently visited an MBDA facility. The latter posted on X: "Production of SCALP missiles to equip our forces will resume in 2025, 15 years after our last order." Zoom out: The Ukrainian military has lobbed Storm Shadows at Russian forces despite Moscow's warning of retaliation.
Herald Sun
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Herald Sun
Hopes for migrant deal as Macron wraps up UK state visit
London and Paris were working Thursday to thrash out a deal on undocumented migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats on the last day of the French president's state visit to Britain. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and France's Emmanuel Macron posed for the cameras outside Downing Street, as they headed inside for a summit with senior ministers focused on that issue and other shared concerns. They include the volatile situation in the Middle East, continued support for Ukraine and a "reboot" of defence ties including joint missile development and nuclear co-operation. The two leaders agreed Wednesday that there was a need for a "new deterrent" to curb the small boat crossings. The issue has become a major headache for Starmer's year-old Labour government as support for the upstart anti-immigrant Reform UK party soars. The UK would tackle undocumented migration with "new tactics" and a "new level of intent", Starmer said in summit opening remarks, adding: "We will agree the situation in the Channel cannot go on as it is." A so-called "one in, one out" migrant deal, details of which were reportedly still being discussed, would see migrants sent back to France in return for the UK accepting a similar number of migrants with strong asylum cases. As the leaders met, the UK Coastguard said a number of the small boats headed to southeast England had been sighted in the Channel. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage meanwhile posted a video and photo on X from another boat showing the scene in the waterway between Britain and France -- one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Describing it as a "classic" scenario over the past five years when the sea was calm, he described seeing "about 70 people on board being escorted all the way over by the French Navy" with UK Border force "waiting for the handover". - Pomp and politics - The mooted migrant-exchange scheme, which has sparked "serious concerns" among some other European nations, could initially involve around 50 people a week, French daily Le Monde reported. More than 21,000 migrants have made the Channel crossing in rudimentary vessels this year alone. During a meeting with Macron on Wednesday, Starmer outlined his government's policies to tackle issues such as illegal working, a Downing Street spokesperson said. Illegal employment opportunities are one of the "pull factors" France claims has made the UK particularly attractive to migrants. Thursday's summit follows two days of events spanning pomp and politics, trade and culture for Macron and his wife Brigitte. The French first couple were welcomed on Tuesday by King Charles III and Queen Camilla with a horse-drawn carriage procession, a 41-gun salute and a banquet at Windsor Castle, west of London. - Ukraine focus - As part of a mooted defence agreement, the UK and France would order more Storm Shadow cruise missiles -- long-range, air-launched weapons jointly developed by the allies -- while stepping up work on a replacement system, the UK defence ministry said. The missiles have been shipped to Ukraine in significant numbers to help Kyiv in its war with Russia following Moscow's full-scale 2022 invasion. Starmer and Macron will also on Thursday dial into a meeting of the so-called "coalition of the willing" on Ukraine. Britain and France are spearheading talks among the 30-nation coalition on how to support a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, including potentially deploying peacekeeping forces. Starmer's office said this week that the call would "discuss stepping up support for Ukraine and further increasing pressure on Russia". They will speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to the French presidency. The state visit also saw Macron formally announce the loan of the famous Bayeux Tapestry, depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England, to the British Museum for 10 months from September 2026 in return for a number of English treasures. bur-vl-har/jj Originally published as Hopes for migrant deal as Macron wraps up UK state visit
Leader Live
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Leader Live
UK and France agree nuclear weapons can be used in tandem to deter Russia
The Prime Minister said there was 'no greater demonstration' of the importance of the UK-France relationship than the new initiative. The Northwood Declaration signed by Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron, means that Europe's two sovereign nuclear powers would mobilise their deterrent together if threatened. The Franco-British move is designed to act as a warning to Russia. It comes as US President Donald Trump has called on European allies to step up their contribution to Nato, and as the US tilts its influence away from Europe towards the Pacific. Sir Keir outlined a series of joint military ventures the UK and France would undertake together as he and the French president visited the UK's military headquarters, Northwood, in north-west London. The Prime Minister said: 'Now as Europe's only nuclear powers and as leaders in Nato, we play a vital role in preserving the peace and security on this continent. 'So today, we've updated the historic Lancaster House treaty to protect our people and our way of work. This is a major modernisation. 'We are overhauling combined joint expeditionary force to make it five times larger, 50,000 troops strong, able to act across every domain. 'But with going further, this morning, we signed the Northwood Declaration, confirming for the first time that we are co-ordinating our independent nuclear deterrents. 'From today, our adversaries will know that any extreme threat to this continent would prompt a response from our two nations.' He said of the Northwood Declaration: 'There is no greater demonstration of the importance of this relationship, and while we stand together for our collective defence, we must also deliver a defence dividend for working people so we've agreed a deeper industrial partnership today to bring our defence industries closer than ever before.' Alongside the new nuclear pact, and refreshed joint force, France and Britain have both pledged to replenish their stocks of Storm Shadow missiles. Both countries have gifted the long-range weapons to Ukraine, allowing Kyiv to strike deep into Russian territory. The two nations also plan to work more closely on developing a successor Storm Shadow.
North Wales Chronicle
10-07-2025
- Politics
- North Wales Chronicle
UK and France agree nuclear weapons can be used in tandem to deter Russia
The Prime Minister said there was 'no greater demonstration' of the importance of the UK-France relationship than the new initiative. The Northwood Declaration signed by Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron, means that Europe's two sovereign nuclear powers would mobilise their deterrent together if threatened. The Franco-British move is designed to act as a warning to Russia. It comes as US President Donald Trump has called on European allies to step up their contribution to Nato, and as the US tilts its influence away from Europe towards the Pacific. Sir Keir outlined a series of joint military ventures the UK and France would undertake together as he and the French president visited the UK's military headquarters, Northwood, in north-west London. The Prime Minister said: 'Now as Europe's only nuclear powers and as leaders in Nato, we play a vital role in preserving the peace and security on this continent. 'So today, we've updated the historic Lancaster House treaty to protect our people and our way of work. This is a major modernisation. 'We are overhauling combined joint expeditionary force to make it five times larger, 50,000 troops strong, able to act across every domain. 'But with going further, this morning, we signed the Northwood Declaration, confirming for the first time that we are co-ordinating our independent nuclear deterrents. 'From today, our adversaries will know that any extreme threat to this continent would prompt a response from our two nations.' He said of the Northwood Declaration: 'There is no greater demonstration of the importance of this relationship, and while we stand together for our collective defence, we must also deliver a defence dividend for working people so we've agreed a deeper industrial partnership today to bring our defence industries closer than ever before.' Alongside the new nuclear pact, and refreshed joint force, France and Britain have both pledged to replenish their stocks of Storm Shadow missiles. Both countries have gifted the long-range weapons to Ukraine, allowing Kyiv to strike deep into Russian territory. The two nations also plan to work more closely on developing a successor Storm Shadow.
Straits Times
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
UK, France unveil migrants deal as Macron wraps up state visit
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox NORTHWOOD, United Kingdom - London and Paris unveiled a 'pilot' programme on July 10 to return to France some of the migrants arriving in the UK on small boats across the Channel, as President Emmanuel Macron wrapped up his state visit. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the deal, hammered out during the French leader's three-day visit, 'groundbreaking' and capable of stemming the record numbers of people who have embarked on the perilous journey so far this year. 'This is groundbreaking, because this is a scheme intended to break the model, and to make it clear that if you cross in a small boat, then you'll end up where you started,' he said, in a joint press conference with Mr Macron. 'In exchange for every return, a different individual will be allowed to come here' in a safe manner, Mr Starmer said, adding that the scheme would start within 'the coming weeks'. Although Mr Starmer did not say how many people might be returned to France, media reports suggest it could initially total around 50 people a week. In comments likely to infuriate pro-Brexit groups, Mr Macron said Britain's 2020 departure from the EU had worsened the situation in the Channel, cutting off legal migration routes and access to the bloc's own return agreements. 'So for people wanting to cross, there is no legal way, nor a way of sending people back after a crossing,' Mr Macron said. 'This is a pull factor to attempt the crossing – exactly the inverse effect of what Brexit promised.' Wide-ranging focus Alongside migration, the two leaders used the visit to work on a raft of initiatives and shared concerns over defence, trade and culture. They included addressing the volatile situation in the Middle East, continued support for Ukraine and a 'reboot' of defence ties, including joint missile development and nuclear cooperation. Among the announcements was a commitment to increase from 10,000 to 50,000 troops a Combined Joint Expeditionary Force (CJEF) established more than a decade ago. The cross-Channel allies also said they would order more Storm Shadow cruise missiles – long-range, air-launched weapons jointly developed by the allies – while stepping up work on a replacement system. The missiles have been shipped to Ukraine in significant numbers to help Kyiv in its war with Russia following Moscow's full-scale 2022 invasion. Mr Starmer and Mr Macron dialled into a meeting on July 10 of the so-called 'coalition of the willing' on Ukraine, announcing that new headquarters for the European-led, 30-nation grouping had opened in Paris. Britain and France are spearheading talks among the coalition on how to support a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, including potentially deploying peacekeeping forces. Meanwhile, Mr Macron urged joint UK-France recognition of a Palestinian state, calling such moves 'the only hope for peace' in the conflict-ridden region. Time for pomp The visit also saw the typical British pomp and pageantry of such occasions, with King Charles III and Queen Camilla welcoming Mr Macron and his wife Brigitte to Windsor Castle on July 8. The entourage enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage procession, a 41-gun salute and a banquet at Windsor Castle, west of London, where the Francophile king and French leader toasted a new 'entente amicale'. However, much of the attention over the three-day visit focused on the vexing issue of cross-Channel migration. It has become a major headache for Mr Starmer's year-old Labour government, as support for the upstart anti-immigrant Reform UK party soars. More than 21,000 migrants have made the Channel crossing in rudimentary vessels this year alone. As the leaders met on July 10, the UK Coastguard said a number of the small boats headed to south-east England had been sighted in the Channel. Meanwhile Reform UK leader Nigel Farage reacted to the returns deal, branding it 'a humiliation for Brexit Britain'. 'We have acted today as an EU member and bowed down to an arrogant French President,' Mr Farage said on X. The main opposition Conservative Party also criticised the plan, accusing Mr Starmer of 'weak and ineffective gimmicks' The mooted migrant-exchange scheme has also sparked 'serious concerns' among some other European nations. AFP
