ANKARA

France, Germany, Italy and Poland have agreed to collaborate on the development of a long-range cruise missile, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said Thursday.

Lecornu said on X that the four countries’ defense ministers signed a joint letter of intent for the project on the sidelines of the NATO leaders’ summit in Washington, D.C.

"The war in Ukraine shows that long-range strikes are a key issue for the defense of Europe," Lecornu said.

The letter of intent was signed to “initiate cooperation in this area mobilizing our European defense industry," he added.

*Writing by Alperen Aktas from Istanbul