The British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer praised the trilateral program to build a sixth-generation fighter jet as "important" and "making significant progress," but avoided a clear commitment to further British participation.

Starmer stated on Monday that the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), in which the United Kingdom collaborates with Italy and Japan, "offers significant benefits for this country." At the same time, he pointed out that "a review of British defense is currently underway" and did not rule out the possibility that the program could be canceled due to costs. These speculations arose from a media report last week.

At the Farnborough International Airshow in Hampshire, a biennial aviation and defense exhibition, Starmer said about GCAP: 'It is an important program and I know that people in the room want to hear that from me. In my view, we are making significant progress in this program.'

Economic Minister Jonathan Reynolds spoke more clearly and emphasized that the government "strongly supports the program." He added, "We see it as essential for the future, not only in terms of our defense but also for our industrial needs.

The sector is a "great example of the kind of industrial policy we want to see in a larger part of the economy, where there is real collaboration between the private sector and the government.

The largest defense companies in Great Britain, BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce, are collaborating with industrial partners Leonardo from Italy and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries from Japan on the program that aims to bring a new fighter jet into the air by 2035.

Herman Claesen, Managing Director of BAE for GCAP, said on Monday in front of journalists that the partners are working towards the start of the design and development phase of the project next year. The British government has so far committed just over 2 billion pounds for the original Tempest program but will need to invest significantly more to make it a reality.

Defense industry managers have privately downplayed the likelihood of a government cancellation of the program, which is backed by a trilateral agreement between the three partner nations, but acknowledged that it is important to continue promoting the program. "The review has made it clear to us that we need to continue promoting this program," said one manager, noting that there would be competition for resources among the armed forces.

The newly appointed Defense Minister John Healey will hold a ministerial meeting on the platform in Farnborough on Tuesday.

Roberto Cingolani, CEO of the Italian defense company Leonardo, stated at the trade show that it makes sense for the British government to await the review before committing definitively to the program. "I believe the core idea is correct, that the British government wants to wait for the results of the budget review and will decide what to do next based on the results," Cingolani told the Financial Times.

Should the United Kingdom decide to reduce funding, this would "very likely change the balance within the consortium" and could create space for "other partners," he added, but emphasized that he was "not worried.