UK, Germany sign joint defence declaration for closer cooperation

BERLIN (Reuters) - Britain and Germany signed a joint defence declaration on Wednesday, pledging to work more closely to strengthen their defence industries, reinforce European security and support Ukraine in its fight to push back Russian forces.

Britain's new defence minister, John Healey, signed the pact in Berlin, where he is expected to speak alongside German counterpart Boris Pistorius at a press conference at 1230 GMT.

Healey's visit is part of a two-day trip that includes stops in France, Poland and Estonia as he sets out the new Labour government's commitment to deepen defence ties with allies in the European Union.

"These visits send a clear message that European security will be this government's first foreign and defence priority," Healey said in a statement.

"Our new defence declaration between the UK and Germany will kickstart a deep, new defence relationship, built on our nations' shared values."

Britain's defence ministry said the two nations would also work together to tackle security challenges such as in the cyber domain.

New Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said he wants Britain to boost cooperation with European allies on defence and security to better support Ukraine, a message he reiterated at a meeting of the European Political Community last week.

Starmer has also proposed the idea of a UK-EU security pact, covering a range of areas such as energy, supply chains, pandemics and migration.

(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar, editing by Elizabeth Piper and Alex Richardson)