Is Starmer’s visit to Germany damaging relations with the EU?

The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, and the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, announced that they intend close a new contract at the end of the year, focusing on security, trade and information sharing.

In spite Starmer was against Brexitstrongly rejecting a return to the European single market, and trying to create a “once in a generation” deal. Starmer has previously said that the Brexit deal, negotiated under Boris Johnson in 2020, was a “slosh” and that the terms were not beneficial enough for the British.

One of the agreements that the EU expected was the United Kingdom back to the Erasmus program study abroad, or would make it easier for German or EU students to study in the UK. Starmer specifically dismissed it.

It is believed that the new deal is similar to the one agreed by the former prime minister of Great Britain, David Cameron, with France in 2010, before Brexit, and will focus on defence. At the same time, both the EU and the UK They prepare for the US government of Donald Trump.

Although the two leaders said that there was no change in the position on the Middle East and on the supply of weapons to Ukrainethey said they would focus their efforts on ending illegal smuggling networks, in an effort to prevent irregular immigration to the EU and the United Kingdom.

The leader of the German opposition, Friedrich Merz, said yesterday that Scholz intends reduce irregular immigration to “zero”.

The new agreement could raise problems with the EU, as Brussels would have to approve the trade agreements. The European Commission has so far presented reluctant to give concessionsas such bilateral agreements with Britain could encourage other EU countries to leave the single market.

Both countries are increasingly isolated in Europe, as one of the few that are governed by social democrats. The German federal elections They are scheduled for autumn 2025. By then, a change in Government is expected.