On 11 and 12 September, university representatives from the Russell Group and German U15 met in Hamburg. At the high-profile meeting at the Universität Hamburg, the main focus was on the UK rejoining the EU's key funding programme for research and innovation Horizon Europe. The agreement between the European Commission and the British government had been announced only four days earlier, on 7 September.

With a budget of 95.5 billion euros for the period 2021-2027, Horizon Europe forms the core of European research funding and is one of the largest public research funding programmes worldwide. German U15 and the Russell Group have jointly issued a number of public statements advocating for the UK's full association to the programme in recent years. At the joint meeting in Hamburg, representatives of the two associations discussed in particular how the volume of joint projects within the framework of Horizon Europe can now be quickly increased again in a way that builds on and complements the existing bilateral relations.

The two chairmen of the partner associations, Prof. Dr. Chris Day and Prof. Dr. Georg Krausch, signed a joint statement at the conclusion of the meeting. German U15 and the Russell Group reaffirmed their commitment to further expand research cooperation, to cultivate student and faculty exchange, and to share resources and expertise between universities to address global challenges.