German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is reportedly preparing to convene a high-level crisis meeting with top military officials and procurement experts amid growing unease over Germany’s multibillion-euro deal to purchase U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets, according to Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ).
The meeting, expected to bring together generals, Ministry of Defense experts, and officials from the Interior Ministry’s Office of Purchasing (BeschA), will center on evaluating the strategic reliability of the F-35 platform, as questions swirl over Germany’s potential overreliance on U.S. defense technology.
Germany plans to acquire at least 35 F-35 jets in a deal worth approximately €10 billion. However, concerns have been raised within political and military circles about whether the United States, particularly under the Trump administration, could use its control over the aircraft’s systems to limit or disable their operation remotely.
In a striking line published by SZ, the paper spectacularly asked: “Could the U.S. remotely switch off the F-35 fighter jets, which the Bundeswehr is purchasing for several billions? That’s just a rumor. But in an emergency, the Americans would have other options to put them out of action.”
The article is the latest in a long line of hysterical rhetoric published by the German mainstream media following Trump’s return to the Oval Office.
While a Defense Ministry spokesperson dismissed the claim stating, “The F-35 cannot be simply turned off remotely,” he acknowledged the broader concerns and emphasized that the F-35 is an international program involving eight partner countries and over 20 users, including 14 NATO members.
The controversy comes as several nations — including Canada, Portugal, and Switzerland — are reconsidering or facing political backlash over similar F-35 procurement plans.
“We cannot ignore the geopolitical environment in our elections. The recent position of the United States within NATO… must make us think about the best options because the predictability of our allies is the greatest asset we have to take into account,” said Portugal’s outgoing Defense Minister Nuno Melo recently.
Security expert and Christian Democratic Union (CDU) MP Roderich Kiesewetter, openly questioned the decision to proceed with the procurement of F-35s in an interview with Tagesspiegel.
“The F-35 is a system that the U.S. controls in a fundamental way,” Kiesewetter said. “Germany would be too dependent on the United States… In theory, the U.S. has leverage to make it impossible for us and others to use the F-35.”
Alternative options such as Sweden’s Gripen and France’s Rafale fighter jets are reportedly under consideration, though no official shift has been made. Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger, whose firm contributes to F-35 production, warned against canceling the order, calling such a move “dangerous” and potentially damaging to Germany’s standing as a reliable defense partner.
Some European nations have already dismissed the idea of trashing their own procurement deals with the United States, including Czechia whose Prime Minister Petr Fiala said earlier this month, “It is a whole defense system that exceeds other offers in terms of quality. There is no reason to reconsider here.”
