Nuclear deterrence has no alternative in the efforts to maintain security in Europe in the foreseeable future, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said in a keynote speech at an event of the German Society on Foreign Relations (DGAP) on Monday.
"The US nuclear deterrence, which also protects Europe from blackmail will not have a replacement in the foreseeable future," she argued. "For us, Europeans, it must be preserved at all costs. We need to work on this with Washington in NATO," Lambrecht said.
"And we must support participation in the alliance's ‘nuclear umbrella’ with the necessary means and capabilities," she added, recalling Berlin's earlier decision to replace Bundeswehr’s current Tornado fighter-bombers with new F-35 planes.
