French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday pledged to strengthen the European Union and strengthen bilateral ties that have been strained by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the energy crisis.
In a joint communiqué issued after the event to mark the 60th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty, which ushered in a new era of friendship between former enemies, the two leaders said they would “work together for a more resilient, more sustainable and more capable European Union.” act independently”. He will promote this agenda by creating a “strong European foreign and security policy” and by building “European defense capabilities”.
They also said they would work together to reform EU institutions, turning the bloc into a more effective “geopolitical actor”.
“Our goal is the same: a more sovereign and united Europe that controls its own destiny,” Macron said at a joint press conference.
Scholz added: “Franco-German cooperation is needed for progress in Europe as a whole.”
French and German officials said the conference showed the two countries had successfully resolved months of tensions that have fueled conflict over everything from a joint defense project to how to respond to Russia cutting natural gas supplies to Europe. The dispute is also being played out in Brussels, and is hampering decision-making at a crucial time for the European Union as it tries to maintain unity during the war in Ukraine.
Frictions came to a head late last year when Paris delayed earlier plans to host the summit in October, a move officially made for scheduling reasons, but French officials privately acknowledged as a danger to Germany. Since then, tensions have eased, especially after Paris and Berlin agreed to enter the next phase of development of the next-generation fighter jet, the Future Combat Air System.
On Sunday, the pageantry replaced earlier rancour, with the French and German cabinets, the heads of the two countries’ parliaments and about 300 members of parliament gathering in Paris.
French and German ministers are discussing how the EU should respond to the Inflation Reduction Act, US president Joe Biden’s energy package that includes substantial subsidies for everything from electric vehicles to hydrogen technology, and drags investment in green technology from Europe to the US.
The communiqué expressed its commitment to strengthen Europe’s energy independence and accelerate the fight against climate change, including an agreement to extend the hydrogen pipeline in Germany in the future to be built between Spain and France, known as H2Med.
Although Scholz and Macron vowed to firmly support Ukraine and said their position was “perfectly coordinated” with partners, fissures have appeared between European and American backers about whether to send Kyiv a modern main battle tank.
Supporters of the move say the weapons will help Ukraine push back Russian forces and retake territory, but Germany worries that giving the tanks would be a risky escalation that could drag European countries directly into the conflict.
Scholz has come under heavy pressure in recent days to authorize the export of Germany’s Leopard 2 tanks, hundreds of which are held in the arsenals of countries such as Poland that want to send them to Ukraine.
Asked if he would agree to send Leopards, Scholz declined to comment, adding only that the decision on military aid to Ukraine should be made jointly by the country’s allies.
Macron said he had asked the French defense ministry to review whether to send its own main battle tank, the Leclerc. “No one was denied,” he said. “That decision will be made with our allies . . . and there will be more work to do in the coming days and weeks.”