Keir Starmer forced to send British troops on EU MISSIONS in return for Brexit defence pact

Sir Keir Starmer speaks while visiting crew on HMS Prince of Wales
GB News
Lewis Henderson

By Lewis Henderson


Published: 09/05/2025

- 11:42

The agreement will be negotiated on May 19

British soldiers could be deployed on European Union military missions as part of joining the bloc's rearmament programme, costing £127billion.

The deployments have been released in a leaked draft of the new defence and security partnership, which was marked "classified and sensitive", the Telegraph reports.


The draft says Sir Keir Starmer will have to consider sending British troops on "civilian missions and military operations and missions, upon the invitation of the EU".

It will be negotiated at the UK-EU summit on May 19 in London.

UK Armed ForcesStarmer will consider sending British troops to fight in EU missionsGETTY

Joining the deal will be "the first prerequisite for a third country to be able to participate in" the EU's Security Action For Europe (SAFE) fund.

The SAFE scheme aims to raise at least £127billion through the EU's budget to buy weapons from manufacturers in the scheme.

The Government is keen to join the fund so British armed firms can achieve new contracts.

Since Donald Trump's warning over lack of defence spending, the EU have been trying to ramp up arms spending.

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The Safe agreement says that third countries "must have entered into a security and defence partnership in order to open up eligibility".

This draft, which was put together by the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, lays out areas where the bloc expects the UK to cooperate on foreign policy, security and defence.

It proposes new intelligence-sharing mechanisms and coordination of conflict prevention and joins plans to put the UK and EU on a war footing.

There are no references in the plan on illegal migration or tackling people smuggling gangs.

Keir Starmer

Negotiations will take place in London on May 19

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The UK will have to accept EU boats to continue fishing in British waters for the next three years.

The leaked agreement comes as Starmer surrendered access to the UK's coastal waters for no concrete agreements.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, said on Wednesday that, "we're pleased that we are now negotiating with our friends in Europe, a UK-EU Defence Security Partnership", as he joined his EU counterparts for talks in Poland.

"The UK will consider its participation in the EU Common Security and Defence Policy civilian missions and military operations and missions, upon the invitation of the EU," the defence deal states.