German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in the UK on Wednesday for a three-day state visit – the first by a German head of state in 27 years – at a moment when security co-operation has helped revive relations strained during the turbulent post-Brexit years.
The German president's visit will feature all the regal splendour expected of such an occasion – a state banquet at Windsor Castle and a rare address to both houses of parliament are on the agenda, signalling the importance London and Berlin now place on their rekindled partnership.
However, behind the pomp and ceremony lies a practical purpose, as Steinmeier will meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer for talks centred on their countries’ joint support for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against Russia.
The war has become the key driver of British–German co-operation, bringing the two European powers closer than at any point in years.
Steinmeier’s trip reciprocates King Charles III’s own 2023 state visit to Germany – his first as monarch – and has been seen in Berlin as a symbolic marker of renewed goodwill. The president’s office described the moment as “a new era in relations between our two countries”.
After a stretch in which “Great Britain distanced itself from Europe”, there is now a clear sense that the UK is “moving back”. Steinmeier himself was sharply critical during the Brexit referendum campaign, accusing “irresponsible politicians” of having “lured” the country into departing the EU – behaviour he once branded “outrageous”.
Nevertheless, relations began to thaw under former Conservative prime minister Rishi Sunak and have continued to strengthen under Starmer’s centre-left government.
Both the UK and German governments have worked to steady ties in the face of rising pressure at home from hard-right, anti-immigration parties – Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Eurosceptic Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage.
German president visits Spanish town of Guernica, hit by Nazi bombs in 1937
Security first
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the turbulence of the Trump administration have prompted Europe’s major powers to deepen their own lines of communication – including former World War adversaries Britain and Germany.
The two countries have markedly stepped up their collaboration. In October 2024, they signed a defence pact, followed in July by their first-ever “friendship treaty”. Both moves reflected the growing security reliance between western Europe’s two biggest military spenders.
“The core of the relationship is in the security and foreign policy field,” said Nicolai von Ondarza of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. Yet, he told reporters, the UK remains “much less present in German political debate than it has been in the past”.
He believes there is scope for Britain to move further towards its European partners, but that Berlin harbours “apprehension that the current Labour government won’t be courageous enough to move further on cooperation with the EU”, especially with Farage’s polling numbers on the rise.
The 2024 friendship treaty also included commitments on tackling irregular migration and boosting cultural and educational exchange – areas expected to feature in the leaders’ talks.
How Germany's Nuremberg trial for Nazi crimes transformed international law
Remembering the past, focus on the future
Historical reflection is an important part of Steinmeier’s trip. On Friday he will visit Coventry, a city devastated by German bombing in World War II, where he will lay a wreath at the city's cathedral.
In a display of reconciliation, he will be joined by members of the Luftwaffe alongside British servicemen, underscoring how far the two nations’ military ties have evolved.
He will also meet school groups from Coventry and Dresden – itself one of the German cities most heavily bombed by the Allies – for a discussion on shared history and future co-operation.
The president will then travel to Oxford to receive an honorary doctorate and visit the facilities of a Siemens subsidiary.
Business links will be a strong theme throughout the trip, as representatives from Siemens, BMW, Deutsche Bank, RWE and other major German firms will accompany Steinmeier.
Mercedes, meanwhile, is set to unveil a €22 million electric-vehicle technology project expected to generate around 150 jobs in the UK – a significant boost to Britain’s growing EV sector.
Steinmeier will also stop by a school in east London on Thursday, joined by former German international football star Per Mertesacker and Arsenal forward Kai Havertz.
(with newswires)
