About: Franco-German relations Archives

French President Emmanuel Macron gave a speech in the German Bundestag – but this will not bring him any closer to his idea of Europe. A commentary piece by Albrecht Meier, correspondent in the Berlin office of EURACTIV Germany’s media partner Der Tagesspiegel.

While German companies already have a strong presence in France, more and more of them want to invest in the country, attracted by the French government’s digital policy, among other reasons. EURACTIV France reports.

French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled his long-term goals for Europe, including the need for unity, courage and action, at the Charlemagne Prize award ceremony held in Aachen on 10 May. EURACTIV.fr reports.

Neither France nor Germany is ready to acknowledge a cooling down in their relationship. But the German government's complete lack of flexibility is ruffling the feathers of the French side. EURACTIV.fr reports.

French and German NGOs have asked Brune Poirson and Jochen Flasbarth – state secretaries for the environment in France and Germany, respectively - to make the tandem “the engine of an ambitious European climate policy.”

French Minister of Economic Affairs Bruno Le Maire's meeting with 'Jamaica' coalition negotiators in Berlin on Wednesday (8 November) was not a coincidence. From the French point of view, President Emmanuel Macron’s eurozone plans might be threatened by the formation of the new German government. EURACTIV Germany reports.

France and Germany unveiled plans yesterday (13 July) to develop a European fighter jet, burying past rivalries as part of a raft of measures to tighten defence and security cooperation.

The European Union remains an incomplete project and will require changes to its treaties that bring greater convergence between eurozone member states, French President Emmanuel Macron said in comments published on Thursday (13 July).

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, speaking at a joint presser after the end of the EU summit on Friday (23 June), said that treaty change should not be an obstacle to carrying out important reforms.

French President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday (22 June) that with German Chancellor Angela Merkel they would table concrete proposals for the future of the EU and of the Eurozone in three months’ time.

After cheering Emmanuel Macron's win over his far-right rival in the French presidential election, a row has broken out within German Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition government over how to respond to his calls for closer European integration.

Having played cat and mouse with Greece over its debt crisis, the good cop and bad cop over Ukraine’s crisis, and having ignited and then steered the refugee crisis, Berlin realises it has no control on the other big geopolitical risk on its doorstep: the Brexit referendum.

Berlin and Paris pledged to work more closely together, during government consultations on Tuesday (31 March) in Berlin, with ministers from both countries aiming for deeper cooperation on numerous issues such as energy policy, TTIP and drone development. EURACTIV Germany reports.

France and Germany are both outspoken in their criticisms of the inclusion of the Investor State Dispute Settlement mechanism in the ongoing trade talks with the US. The two countries are discussing throwing their combined weight behind a common position onthe matter. EURACTIV France reports. 

Warning that Europe risks a "stagnation trap", leading French and German economists proposed reforms and investments to revive growth in the eurozone's two biggest economies, but Berlin swiftly dismissed a key proposal to boost its public investment.

25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, an event that brought France and Germany closer together, the two countries are fighting to save their relationship against the odds. EURACTIV.fr reports. 

Drones for Ukraine, no ground troops in Syria and Iraq: German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his French counterpart Laurent Fabius celebrated the French-German relations at a meeting in Berlin Wednesday (15 October), doing their best to circumvent controversial issues like the French budget deficit. EURACTIV Germany reports.

Germany and France will try to reconcile divergent visions of how to fix Europe's economy today (22 September) when Manuel Valls makes his first visit to Berlin as French prime minister and holds talks with Angela Merkel.

The two heads of state will meet on 9-10 May in Stralsund, Germany, for an informal discussion on the future President of the European Commission. EURACTIV France reports.

The core of European integration is what a layman would call a ‘European way of life’, a specific economic and social model that defines European societies and distinguishes them from the rest of the world, former WTO chief Pascal Lamy has said in web chat organised by EURACTIV and the Notre Europe think tank.

Three prominent political analysts spoke with EURACTIV.de on the 51th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty, evaluating the Franco-German partnership in 2014 and challenges for the years ahead.

A new coalition in Germany may revamp its EU policy towards more commitment. The country's partners will have to get a better grasp of its concerns, but the new constellation can foster further progress in Europe, write Jacques Delors, Antonio Vitorino and Yves Bertoncini.

The EU has “fundamental” structural problems, while France and Germany are no longer able to formulate a common vision for it, said MEP Sven Giegold (Germany, Greens/EFA group) in an interview with EURACTIV Germany.

A draft resolution in the ruling French Socialist leaked over the weekend has revealed deep hostility towards German-led austerity policies in the European Union. The draft text has since been amended but the episode exposes a deep ideological fracture between the eurozone’s two largest economies.