PR | Germany's New Coalition opens pathways for Common Defence and Political Union in line with UEF position
Brussels, 11 April 2024
The 146-page “Responsibility for Germany” Coalition Agreement (in brief Agreement) was presented on 9 April 2025 by the representatives of the Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands (CDU), Christlich-Soziale Union in Bayern (CSU) and Sozial Demokratische Partei Deutschlands (SPD) after close to a month of negotiations. The compromise package is intended to form the basis for cooperation between the three parties, which would build the German Federal Government for the next four years. As the most populous Member State and the one with the highest GDP among the 27, Germany should embrace its specific position within the EU in a manner that serves the entire Union.
The fifth of six chapters focuses on “Europe” that starts with these words “The EU is a guarantor of freedom, peace, security and prosperity. These values are under intense pressure from historical changes. The times demand courage, determination and European responses. Our country can only have a positive future with a strong and democratic EU. We will exploit every possibility to strengthen the EU's capacity for action and strategic sovereignty.”
According the three coalition parties, German interests are very much intertwined with European interests. “Germany is poised to take on more responsibility in and for Europe, as declared by the future government. This is a positive development and long overdue.” declared Christian Moos, the Secretary General of Europa Union Deutschland (EUD).
The European Federalists welcomes this document because it shares a common vision of strengthening Europe's defence capabilities, as issued by the recent Memorandum on a European Defence Union (in brief Memorandum) published by the Action Committee for the United States of Europe, that was sent to the main European policymakers at 5th March 20251 in view of the upcoming meeting of the European Council on 6th March, the Plenary of the European Parliament of 10th March, and the publication of the White Paper on Defence on 19th March, 2025.
Many elements of the Coalition Agreement are in convergence with the Memorandum showing that the German coalition’s political stances are in line with the aspiration of the European Federalists. Here below the main points of convergences:
1. Advancing a European Defence Union
Both documents promote the strategic autonomy of the European Union and support closer cooperation with NATO while building a robust European defence pillar.
The agreement acknowledges NATO’s continued role as the cornerstone of collective defence for many EU members (“For many Member States, NATO remains the guarantor of collective security.”) but advocates for the creation of the European Pillar of the NATO.
2. Standardisation, interoperability and joint defence industrial cooperation
Both plans stress the importance of harmonising weapons systems and operational standards to improve battlefield effectiveness and reduce inefficiencies. There is strong agreement on the need to overcome industrial fragmentation in Europe and to encourage joint investment, R&D, and procurement of European-made defence technologies.
The Coalition Agreement and the Memorandum support expanding the EU's operational capabilities, encouraging:
- A stronger European defence industry cooperation,
- The development of key technologies
- Joint defence projects among Member States
- A unified European defence market with coordinated export rules
Both documents highlight the strategic importance of space, cybersecurity, AI, and advanced technologies in Europe's future defence architecture.
2. Strategic use of Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO)
PESCO is presented as a key tool in both documents for enabling a core group of member states to deepen integration in security and defence. In the Agreement is written that PESCO projects have to strengthen “European strategic sovereignty".
- strengthening the European Defence Agency (EDA)
- boosting the EU’s technological and industrial base in defence
The agreement strongly emphasizes solidarity with Ukraine and strengthening European defence to protect freedom and peace: this implies a political commitment to collective security.
3. European financing instruments for defence
Both documents advocate for the use of EU-level funding and new financial tools to support defence spending, including exempting such investments from deficit rules under the Stability and Growth Pact.
But Germany reaffirms its commitment to fiscal prudence, opposing the permanent mutualization of debt within the EU. While supporting existing recovery instruments such as NextGenerationEU, the coalition emphasizes that extraordinary financial tools must remain temporary and exceptional.
However, Merz has requested that the German constitutional brake on debt be removed in order to launch a major investment plan for defence and infrastructure (potentially more than one trillion euros) that will allow Germany to grow economically to the benefit of other EU countries and increase its defence capacity.
4. Support for Ukraine as a shared security frontier
Each text recognises Ukraine’s defence as central to European security and the international rules-based order.
5. Deepening European Institutions: Openness to Treaty reform (Article 48 TEU)
While the Memorandum urgently calls for reforming the EU treaties to remove veto powers and increase integration, the coalition agreement states:
“Where necessary, we are open to treaty changes under Article 48 TEU.”
— signalling a cautious yet notable openness to legal and institutional reforms.
The coalition supports the use of “passerelle clauses” which would allow moving beyond unanimity voting in decision-making to the qualified majority in certain political areas and encourages closer cooperation among willing member states.
The followings points of the Memorandum are absent in the Coalition Agreement:
- No reference to a permanent 28th European Army in the German coalition agreement
The Memorandum calls for the establishment of a new European Army as part of a European Defence System (EDS). This idea is absent from the coalition text.
- Lack of nuclear deterrence integration
While the Memorandum advocates Europeanising France’s nuclear capabilities with shared funding, this is not addressed by the German Coalition.
The Union of European Federalists welcomes also two points that are in line with our political request to the EU Member States Governments.
1. Clear Support for EU Enlargement but with Institutional Deepening in parallel
The coalition expresses strong political backing for the accession of Ukraine, Moldova, and countries of the Western Balkans. Germany proposes a step-by-step integration process for candidate countries, including partial participation in EU programs.
Institutional reforms are seen as a necessary parallel step to ensure the EU’s capacity to absorb new member states. The UEF calls on governments, national politics, and European institutions to tackle the EU capacity to enlarge with its last statement “Is the European Union at risk of losing the enlargement battle as well?” approved in Budapest, 16 November 2024.
2. Reforming the European Parliament’s Electoral Law
The Koalitionsvertrag 2025 explicitly endorses the introduction of transnational electoral lists as part of a broader effort to strengthen democratic legitimacy and political discourse at the European level. The new coalition government commits to supporting a uniform European electoral law that includes transnational lists, with the aim of fostering a truly pan-European democratic space.
This position aligns with UEF's advocacy during the last European elections and with the Resolution of December 12, 2023, on the European Elections 2024, for which UEF President Domenec Ruiz Devesa served as Rapporteur during his term as an MEP from 2019 to 2024.
"The Union of European Federalists very much welcomes the clear commitment of the coalition partners for a stronger and more integrated European Union. On a European Defence Union, we noticed in many points similarities with our recent Memorandum on European Defence Union by the Action Committee for the United States of Europe." says Domenec Ruiz Devesa, President of the UEF and former MEP.
“The position of the coalition agreement on the necessary institutional reforms also follows the positions that the UEF and its national sections have been calling for some time: there cannot be enlargement without deepening. To go faster in these very versatile and unstable times of emergency and to create trust among member states, it is necessary to use all the possibilities relying in the Treaties, but sooner or later it will be necessary to open up the reform of the Treaties according to art. 48 as requested by the European Parliament in November 2023”.
The coalition treaty between the CDU, CSU, and SPD includes calls and commitments for a more autonomous and capable European Union, emphasizing 'strategic sovereignty' for Europe, particularly in response to current geopolitical challenges. These positions align closely with those of the UEF.
The goals are ambitious and promising. Germany has the potential to bring new momentum and drive the necessary deepening of the European Union. The coalition treaty has raised hopes and expectations. The challenge now is to translate these words into action.
You can read here the German version.