BERLIN: Lufthansa will no longer take on any new pilots at its main brand, Germanwings and cargo units, leading to those businesses shrinking, the carrier said on Tuesday, in response to strike threats by pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit.

It also said it was suing the union over the legality of a strike at Lufthansa Cargo in April 2014. Lufthansa said the cargo unit had a valid pay agreement at that time, adding that the costs of the April strike for the group totalled 60 million euros.

Lufthansa further said future discussions would be limited to pay and collective labour agreements, indicating it would not discuss its plans to expand low-cost division Eurowings.

Copyright Reuters, 2015