BERLIN, Germany: Germany will purchase Tomahawk cruise missiles and Typhon launchers from the United States as it seeks to strengthen its long-range strike capabilities while developing its own European defense systems, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said.

Merz told lawmakers he finalized the agreement with the U.S. government during the NATO summit in Ankara, saying the talks held on Tuesday and Wednesday had exceeded his expectations.

"We are closing a critical strategic gap in our defence, while simultaneously working to develop our own European systems and station them in Europe," he said.

According to German government sources, Washington is expected to approve Germany's procurement of Tomahawk missiles and corresponding ground-based Typhon launchers in August under a letter of intent signed on Tuesday.

The number of missiles and launchers Germany plans to acquire has not been disclosed because the information is classified.

The purchase aligns with U.S. President Donald Trump's call for European allies to take greater responsibility for their own defense, including by purchasing American-made weapons.

The future of the Tomahawk program had been uncertain after Trump announced in May that the United States would reduce its military presence in Germany.

That move was widely viewed as ending a previous U.S. plan to deploy a battalion equipped with long-range Tomahawk missiles in Germany. The deployment had been intended as an interim deterrent against Russia while European countries developed their own long-range missile capabilities.

Germany currently produces its own Taurus cruise missiles, but with a range of about 500 kilometers (311 miles), they are three to five times shorter-range than Tomahawk missiles.