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By Andrea Shalal
BERLIN, Feb 10 (Reuters) - The German and Dutch militarieshave agreed to further deepen defence cooperation this year byputting a German short-range air defence unit under the commandof the Dutch military, a source familiar with the plans toldReuters on Friday.
The German defence ministry had no immediate comment on theagreement, which comes as Europe is seeking to expand defencecooperation on a broader level in the face of U.S. pressure tocontribute more to its own defence under the NATO alliance.
"There is agreement that the German air defence unit will beput under the control of the Dutch air defence command in DePeel," the source said, adding that the arrangement had beenconcluded this week.
The change is based on a broader agreement for a mixedGerman-Dutch 414 Tank Battalion, which is expected to be fullyformed by 2019, according to the source.
The German and Dutch militaries have already knittedtogether closely some land forces and naval elements in whatanalysts and military officials say could be a model for deepersecurity cooperation in Europe in the future.
"The German military cooperates with the French, the Dutchand others, but the cooperation with the Dutch is by far theleast complicated," said Tim Stuchtey, executive director of theBrandenburg Institute for Society and Security in Potsdam.
"This is a great example for how things can work in thefuture on the European level," he said.
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Rainer Arnold, defence policy spokesman for the SocialDemocrats in parliament, said the agreement underscored theimportance of German-Dutch military cooperation.
"We welcome every step in this direction," he said. "Wecooperate very well with the Dutch military."
Germany and the Netherlands also plan to jointly develop anew short-range air defence system as part of the expandedcooperation, according to the source.
No further details were immediately available.
The German military last week said it had decided to replaceits ageing short-range air defence systems and help fill a gapin capabilities.
Germany and the Netherlands last year declared operational anew joint concept of operations for their Patriot air andmissile defence systems that they said could be expanded toinclude other countries.
In a separate development, the German defence ministry thisweek informed lawmakers that it may not finalise a contract fora big medium-range missile defence programme until afternational elections in September, according to Tobias Lindner, aGreen lawmaker and member of the parliamentary budget committee.
European missiles maker MBDA has been answering a raft ofquestions after its proposal to build the system came inbillions of euros higher than the previous estimate of 4 billioneuros ($4.5 billion).
Germany in 2015 chose MBDA, jointly owned by Airbus Group, Britain's BAE Systems Plc and Italy'sLeonardo Finmeccanica SpA to build the system, but settough milestones for it to retain the contract. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; editing by Ralph Boulton)