Britain and Germany signed a landmark defence agreement on Wednesday and pledged to co-operate on exercises on NATO's eastern flank as they stressed the need for Europe to be able to defend itself given possible escalation in the war in Ukraine.

Britain and Germany have signed what the UK government is calling a "landmark defence agreement" aimed at boosting security, investment and jobs. Under the agreement, German defence company Rheinmetall will open a new factory in the UK to manufacture barrels for artillery guns – supporting 400 jobs.

Officials say German submarine-hunting planes will patrol the North Atlantic from a base in Scotland under a new Britain-Germany defense pact in response to the growing threat from Russia