UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is in the final stages of negotiations for a major trade agreement with the European Union, which would grant British defense companies access to billion-pound tenders within the newly established European defense fund, The Times reports.
According to sources, the deal would allow British arms manufacturers to participate in bidding for funding for defense and security projects from a 150-billion-euro fund set to be created within the EU.
The newspaper notes that Starmer’s goal is to reduce trade barriers between London and Brussels, which emerged after Brexit.
As part of these efforts, a UK-EU summit will be held in London on May 19, where further defense cooperation will be discussed.
