German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met in Tokyo on 28 October and issued a joint leaders’ statement. The defense commitments in the written text are specific, but modest. The bigger question, whether Germany joins Japan’s sixth-generation fighter effort, came up only at the joint press conference. There, Merz described a process that has started, not a decision.
What the Statement Commits To
According to CNA’s Berlin correspondent Lin Shang-ying, the two governments agreed to hold a foreign-and-defence ministers’ “2+2” as early as possible. They also agreed to explore more joint exercises and other military cooperation between the Bundeswehr and the Japan Self-Defense Forces, and to advance defence-industrial and technology cooperation “including unmanned systems.”
On regional security, the statement expresses serious concern about the East and South China Seas. It restates strong opposition to any attempt to change the status quo unilaterally by force or coercion and stresses the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. CNA notes that the text does not name China, even though its language on critical-mineral export restrictions, economic coercion and non-market overcapacity clearly reflects pressures both countries face from Beijing.
The statement also covers supply-chain resilience, semiconductors, critical raw materials, AI, 6G and energy, plus cooperation against foreign information manipulation. Merz invited Japan to be partner country of the 2028 Hannover Messe, and Takaichi accepted. The second Japan–Germany intergovernmental consultations are set for Berlin next year (CNA). Jiji Press via nippon.com adds that the leaders agreed to launch a high-level AI dialogue.
At the podium, Takaichi described the security agenda as looking at “opportunities and frameworks” to deepen unit-to-unit cooperation and promoting defence-industrial cooperation where the two sides can complement each other (Jiji via nippon.com). On Taiwan, Merz said the UN Charter’s ban on the use of force applies there.
The Fighter: A Review Order, Not a Decision
Combat aircraft do not appear in CNA’s account of the statement. The subject came up at the press conference. As Reuters’ Andreas Rinke reported, Merz said Germany wants to explore whether cooperation on building combat aircraft is possible, and that “a corresponding Prüfauftrag” — a formal review order — “is ready.”
He was careful about how far this goes. Whether Germany ends up in a new or joint fighter project “is open,” he said. Germany would have to examine whether there is still room for it in the GCAP consortium, because “the industrial shares are in part already far advanced in discussion.” He said the two defence ministers would meet “in very short time” to talk it through. On timing, he said Japan would like a decision by the turn of the year, and “whether that can go so fast, I cannot promise from the German side” (Reuters via onvista).
Reuters places the remarks in the context of the failure of the Franco-German-Spanish FCAS project and an early-October UK offer for Germany to join GCAP. Merz repeated his goal of fewer combat-aircraft systems in Europe and larger production runs, the factor that largely drives unit cost. Jiji describes the same remarks as Merz expressing interest in joining the Japan–UK–Italy program.
The Business Track
Jiji reports that about thirty company executives travelled with Merz, and that government and business signed 33 memoranda in total, including on advanced fields such as fusion. Merz’s stop in Tokyo is part of a week-long Asia trip with an industry, technology, defence and energy delegation that also takes in Singapore and South Korea (CNA). As of the morning of 29 October, the Japanese foreign ministry’s Germany page had not yet posted the statement text, so the account above relies on press reporting of it.
Why It Matters
The difference between what went into the text and what was said at the podium tells you where each item stands. The 2+2, the exercises and the unmanned-systems line are commitments both governments were willing to sign. They create a standing structure that can carry defense cooperation forward whatever happens with the fighter. The unmanned-systems wording is especially worth watching. That is where German industry is moving fastest, where Japan needs capacity, and where cooperation does not require reopening anyone’s industrial work-share agreements.
The fighter is different. Merz’s own words point to the real constraint: GCAP’s work shares are already largely settled among the UK, Japan and Italy. A German entry would mean either reopening them or accepting a smaller role than Berlin sought in FCAS. A review order and a quick ministers’ meeting keep the option open without committing to it. Japan’s wish for a decision by year-end reflects GCAP’s schedule. Merz’s refusal to promise one reflects German domestic and European politics. Whether the two timelines can be reconciled is the question to watch when the defence ministers meet.