They agreed to accelerate plans to develop a joint command centre for international operations and move onto building unmanned fighter drones.
Speaking alongside Mr Sarkozy at a press conference in the Elysee Palace, Mr Cameron said: “I don’t think that there has been closer French-British co-operation at any time since the Second World War, not just in Libya but also on the vital issues of Syria, Iran, Somalia and defence co-operation.”
“We are similar-sized powers, with similar-sized armed forces, with similar ambitions.
“It is also about making the most of our existing capacity, as we will be combining and using it together. It is also about operational capacity and ability to take action together.
“And it also covers the most sensitive defence areas of all, including of course the nuclear issue,” he added.
The drones will be made by Britain’s BAE systems and France’s Dassault.
Alongside the military agreements, Cameron and Sarkozy also signed agreements that will the UK and France working together on energy production.
The deal, which will see significant development in Britain’s nuclear energy facilities, will be worth £500 million and could create up to 1500 jobs in the UK, says the government.
“This joint declaration will signal our shared commitment to the future of civil nuclear power, setting out a shared long term vision of safe, secure, sustainable and affordable energy, that supports growth and helps to deliver our emission reductions targets,” a statement from Downing Street said.
The summit between Cameron and Sarkozy, will be the last before he faces re-election, something that appears far from a certainty, trailing as he is in the polls to the socialist candidate, Francois Hollande, with Marie Le Penn sapping traditional UMP voters from Sarkozy’s support base.
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