German Lawmakers OK Defense Purchases That Include F-35 Jets

German Lawmakers OK Defense Purchases That Include F-35 Jets
A U.S. F-35A fighter jet lands at Chungju Air Base in Chungju, South Korea on March 29, 2019. South Korea Defense Acquisition Program Administration via Getty Images
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BERLIN—German lawmakers on Wednesday gave the go-ahead for a series of defense procurement projects, including the purchase of Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets, as Berlin begins to spend a huge fund to strengthen the country’s military.

Germany in mid-March announced plans to replace aging Tornado bomber jets with 35 F-35A Lightning II aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons. That was one of a series of projects worth a total of nearly 13 billion euros (nearly $13.8 billion) that have now been approved by parliament’s budget committee.