Germany's Diehl interested in cooperation with Ukraine's Fire Point to produce Flamingo missiles

German defence company Diehl, which manufactures, among other systems, the Iris-T air defence system, has expressed interest in cooperating with Ukraine's Fire Point for the potential production of Ukrainian Flamingo missiles on German territory.

As reported by The Financial Times, Diehl Defence is planning negotiations with Fire Point regarding cooperation, including the potential joint production of FP-5 Flamingo cruise missiles in Germany.

"We are in discussions about how we could work together. I think this could really happen... In the next few weeks, we have several meetings regarding this and then we will see," the company's chief executive Helmut Rauch said in a comment to the media outlets at the ILA Berlin Air Show.

Rauch noted that Diehl could offer Ukrainian partners a more advanced guidance system for the missile and highlighted the company's many years of experience.

As the outlet notes, the announcement came amid Germany's concerns about what could serve as an alternative to American Tomahawk missiles – which were to have been deployed in Germany this year alongside a battalion of American troops but which US President Donald Trump cancelled.

The stated range of the Flamingo is even greater than that of the Tomahawk. However, at this stage outside observers are cautious in their assessment of the missile, as it is entirely new and its practical use began only relatively recently.

Among the most recent strikes publicly reported as carried out by Flamingo missiles is a military plant in Russia's Cheboksary, located over 900 kilometres from Ukraine's borders.

In April, Diehl signed a technology agreement with Fire Point, the details of which have not been publicly disclosed.

In May, Fire Point stated that the German government is considering replacing Tomahawks with Flamingo missiles, while members of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's party called for the creation of a Tomahawk alternative jointly with Ukraine.