Last week, the White House said that the United States will begin episodic deployments of long-range fire capabilities of its Multi-Domain Task Force to Germany in 2026 in an effort to develop an enduring presence of the assets in the region. Later, Pistorius said that the US will deploy the long-range strike systems on a rotational basis and expects Berlin to develop similar weapons systems itself.
"This [location] has not yet been decided. The United States, which will deploy these weapons in Germany, is still in the process of preparing itself. But I want to make it clear — we are talking about conventional weapons systems. We are doing everything possible to prevent the situation from escalating. If it is clear to everyone that Germany and NATO are capable of successfully defending themselves, the likelihood that we will be attacked will decrease," Pistorius told the German Rheinische Post newspaper.
The deployment of US missiles in Germany is a response to the deployment of Iskander ballistic missiles in Russia's Kaliningrad Region, Pistorius said.
The Pentagon announced that in 2026, the US will begin deploying long-range strike systems in Germany that will significantly surpass the weapons already present in Europe. These include SM-6 missiles, Tomahawks, and "hypersonic weapons." Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov stated that Russia will develop a military response to the US plans calmly, without nerves or emotions.