France wants Britain, Germany to form joint military
London, Jan 24 (IANS) France wants Britain and Germany to join itself and form a military partnership in which all three countries will share equipment and troops, a media report said.
The Germans could join a force set up as part of the Anglo-French defence pact in November, as well as all three sharing transport aircraft and air refuelling tankers, the Daily Mail reported.
Senior British defence officials said Britain was keen to see an improvement in defence relations with Germany.
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Closer cooperation with Germany is set to be discussed by Defence Secretary Liam Fox and Prime Minister David Cameron at a security conference in Munich next week.
The defence secretary is said to have a good relationship with his German counterpart Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg.
Fox and Cameron will look to dispel the notion that any further cooperation would be a step towards a 'European army', something Fox is known to oppose and the Prime Minister was keen to dismiss when signing the Anglo French treaty last year.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said that defence cooperation in Europe was "an essential part of our approach to wider international defence" and that the defence secretary "has worked closely with his French and German ministerial counterparts"
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