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It’s a new failure in the Franco-German engine: Paris and Berlin announced yesterday, Wednesday October 19, the postponement of a long-planned joint Council of Ministers for next week. This is a new symptom of the quarrel that has been simmering for several months between the two countries.
Paris minimizes this postponement and blames it on questions of timetables, ministers on vacation. On the other hand, in Berlin, the chancellery recognizes the absence of agreements on essential subjects. The most urgent, that of energy, will be debated at the level of the 27 from this Thursday in Brussels during the council which brings together all the leaders of the Union. On this issue, it’s not just France that has trouble with Germany. The leading importer of Russian gas has been going it alone for several months to make up for the end of Russian deliveries. By massively buying gas to replenish its reserves, Berlin has helped to drive up prices, putting other European gas importers in trouble. By announcing then a vast plan of assistance to 200 billion euros to support its economy, Berlin caused the amazement of Paris. And other capitals. Because this generous support will undoubtedly aggravate the differences in competitiveness between Germany and other European countries.
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And Berlin continues to block the exceptional measures proposed by Paris to reduce the pressure on the energy markets.
The German government is blocking on the gas price cap and on the reform of the electricity market. It has been claimed for a year by France and Spain. Last annoying point: in the name of defending national energy interests, Olaf Scholz is campaigning for the Midcat gas pipeline project between France and Spain, a project that Emmanuel Macron rejects, officially for ecological reasons.
The other big bone of contention between Paris and Berlin concerns joint projects in the field of defense
For this Europe of defense to become a reality, Paris has been fighting for years for the construction of new Franco-German tools. A tank and a combat aircraft to replace the Rafale et l’Eurofighter. But these sites are at a standstill, for lack of agreement between the manufacturers concerned, each country defending its companies. The war in Ukraine could have precipitated an agreement, the opposite is happening. In an emergency, Berlin prefers to buy American. Germany announced in the spring its intention to import American F35s to renew its fleet.
To resolve all these differences, Emmanuel Macron seems to have difficulty finding the path of dialogue with the new German Chancellor
Olaf Scholz is silent, the antithesis of a very talkative and europtimist Emmanuel Macron. But that is not enough to explain the breakdown of the Franco-German dialogue. In the background, there is the very delicate political context of the coalition formed by the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Liberals. This team pulls hard on key subjects such as energy or diplomacy.
These differences echo a profound questioning of the foundations of the prosperity of the German nation. In May, the European export champion posted the first deficit in its trade balance for thirty years. Russia is no longer a reliable partner for gas, but also for outlets for German industry. This new situation is pushing Berlin to question its dependence on China, its main customer outside Europe. Should we rethink the German growth model, and how? A major debate and more pressing in the eyes of Berlin than Franco-German friendship.