He was a slightly dejected leader who traveled to Paris and Warsaw on Wednesday. In his first official trips abroad, the new German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, did not reach the favorable position he expected.
The Christian Democratic leader wanted to send a strong message to his partners. However, it was necessary Two voting roundsOn Tuesday to be confirmed as head of government, an unprecedented event in German political history since World War II. Therefore, he was a shaken leader in the national scene who met his French and Poles counterparts.
This false politician should weigh on Friedrich Merz’s shoulders, whose goal is to make an ideological turn in his country. The new German chancellor, chosen in February, wants to do theDefense a priority. Since its electoral success in February, it has defended a strong Germany within a strong and more independent Europe in the United States. A break with the past for this convinced Atlantist.
Dedicate more resources to defense and talk about expanding France’s nuclear dissuasive capacityThe words of the German Christian Democrat will surely please French president Emmanuel Macron.
“Yes, it seems promising and it is good news, because it could not be worse than between Macron and Scholz (the previous chancellor), who did not get along very well. So I think that with Merz, who also said that he will focus more on international relations and European affairs, we will see a renewal of Frank-German,” explains Sophie Pornschlegel, director Jacques Jacques. Delors.
However, it remains to be seen if Paris and Berlin wake up in ordinary projects or if the objective is to promote the national industry.
“The question will be, of course, the details and we will have to see if France is no longer frank and really does something European, and also if Germany can really abandon its transatlantic tradition, which is still very strong, especially among the conservatives,” adds Sophie Pornschlegel.
Relaunch Weimar’s triangle
After Paris, Friedrich Merz moved to Warsaw. Once again, the gesture was strong. Poland is the EU country that enshrines most of its defense budget. This is a point where the two leaders, who come from the same political family, can approach.
“Poland is a less obvious partner, I think that for Mertz, but he knows, he understands, I think, very well that France and Germany are not enough to lead Europe, that the situation is different, that Europe is different from the past and that Poland is also necessary as part of this European nucleus,” says Piotr Buras, director of the Male Foreign Affairs Board (ECFR).
“The fact that you move to Poland on the first day of your mandate as a chancellor is, of course, a sign of growing interest in this bilateral relationship and I think he will consider Poland as an important partner, along with France and Weimar’s triangle,” he adds.
Weimar’s triangle is a cooperation forum created in 1991 between France, Germany and Poland, at a time when Europe was in full reorganization after the fall of the Berlin wall.
But for Piotr Buras, relaunching the European machine through this trio is too simplistic.
“I think Mertz considers France and Poland, perhaps not as equal partners, but as really important partners for Germany, but he knows that will coalitions, which will shape the future of Europe, should be more important than that,” he says.
Friedrich Merz’s agenda underlines his desire to work at the EU level, since on Friday he will meet with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the president of the European Council, António Costa.
