Europe needs own access to space amid US shift, says Germany's Merz

Europe needs independent access to space in light of the US foreign policy shift under President Donald Trump, German conservative leader Friedrich Merz said on Thursday.

"For some weeks now, and perhaps even for a few days, I have seen this independence as even more urgent than before," said Merz during a visit to the OHB space company in the northern German city of Bremen.

"In my view, aerospace is one of the most important strategic issues that we need to rethink and reassess politically," added Merz, who is the favourite to become German chancellor after elections on Sunday.

Europe requires further capabilities in reconnaissance and weather satellites, the 69-year-old said. "It is of great political and strategic importance for us to be able to develop reconnaissance satellites and weather satellites from our own resources and put them into orbit, into space."

Bremen is set to host the next ministerial council of the European Space Agency in November.

The meeting will decide on future European space projects and their funding.

Figures from Germany's BDLI space industry association showed that Europe only launched four rockets in 2024, with the United States leading on 220 civilian and military launches. In comparison, China had 67, Russia 20 and India 7.