Beginning in 2026, the US will station long-range weapons in Germany

Washington, D.C. As a show of support for NATO and European defense, the US revealed plans to station long-range fire capabilities in Germany starting in 2026. Germany and the United States announced this strategic step in a joint statement on Wednesday.

It will involve the periodic stationing of cutting-edge weapons, such the SM-6 and Tomahawk cruise missiles, combined with the development of hypersonic weapons that will be able to outrange current European weapons. These actions open the door for such capabilities to perhaps be present in the area for an extended period of time.

With the termination of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 2019, the move represents a dramatic change in the defense strategies of the United States and NATO. The original signing of this treaty in 1987 by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and American President Ronald Reagan prohibited ground-based missiles with a range of 500–5,500 kilometers. In the 1990s, a number of European countries—including Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic—diverted their stockpiles of intermediate-range missiles in accordance with the terms of the treaty.

Russia’s alleged violations of the INF Treaty, particularly the development of the 9M729 ground-launched cruise missile—known to NATO as the SSC-8—were the basis for the United States’ withdrawal from the agreement. Tensions have increased in spite of Russia’s repeated denials and subsequent freeze on the construction of comparable missiles. Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, has declared that his country would start producing nuclear missiles with an intermediate range again in reaction to American deployment of similar weapons in Europe and Asia.

This development emphasizes how the dynamics of defense tactics throughout the world are changing and how crucial improved long-range fire weapons are becoming to preserving strategic stability. Amid escalating global tensions, NATO’s security posture and deterrence are expected to be strengthened by the proposed deployment in Germany.