Boris Pistorius will visit the Pentagon chief for a rollout of F-35 warplanes.
09/03/2026 2:19 PM UTC
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius will meet with the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Washington this month, a surprising shift after the Pentagon chief rebuffed a visit earlier this year.
The meeting will take place as part of Pistorius’ trip to the U.S. for a rollout of F-35 warplanes purchased by Germany, according to two NATO defense officials and a U.S. defense official familiar with the planning, who were granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive topic.
The talks are significant given Hegseth’s earlier snub amid tensions between the two countries over the wars in Iran and Ukraine.
Relations have been frosty between the two countries and may have factored into Hegseth’s earlier decision not to meet with Pistorius. President Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany in May after German President Friederich Merz criticized the U.S. war with Iran. The repositioning of the troops is expected to take up to a year to complete.