German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron will meet tonight in Berlin. Both speak to each other more often, but the fact that the visit takes place at Scholz’s place of residence is peculiar. “Macron is a bit of the feisty French salesman and Scholz is a bit of a boring accountant,” says Germany correspondent Derk Marseille.
Things have not been going well between the two heads of government for some time now. Dinner in a restaurant in Potsdam, not far from Berlin, is an opportunity for both of them to ‘show something of themselves in a more personal context, in the hope that this will also improve the atmosphere’, says Marseille.
It is not known whether there will also be a Wiedergutmachung schnitzel on the menu. Scholz and Macron have dinner at the Kochzimmer restaurant. However, it will not be very intimate, delegations from both countries will also be present. Scholz and Macron will reportedly sit at a separate table.
No tandems
According to Marseille, both countries should work as a tandem within the European Union, but this is not the case. “Contact is hit-and-miss and they just don’t agree on a lot of topics,” says Marseille. “Then you can still have such a nice vibe, but if that doesn’t work out in terms of form and content, then it’s going to be really hard work for both gentlemen.”
“Macron is the feisty French salesman and Scholz is the slightly boring accountant”
Both will talk about the war in Ukraine and also some European issues such as the energy crisis. France is making frantic efforts to label nuclear power as green energy within the EU, while Germany is phasing out the energy source. “But for Germany’s energy transition it may be necessary to fall back on nuclear energy,” thinks Marseille.
Nuclear power plants
Within the German coalition, according to Marseilles, ‘it has been sworn that this will not happen’. But many French power plants are close to the German border and play an important role in Europe’s energy mix. “If agreements can be made on this, this can also be a support for the Netherlands.”
Macron and Scholz will also talk about asylum policy within the European Union, another issue on which opinions are strongly divided. This mainly concerns the question of whether or not young people aged between 12 and 18 should automatically benefit from an asylum procedure. France is in favor of a procedure, while Germany prefers these children to be admitted immediately. “This consultation will set the tone and the Netherlands will have to deal with it,” thinks Marseille.
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Great news
Another focal point during the talks will be Ukraine’s position in relation to NATO. Ukraine is due to participate in a NATO summit in Vilnius in July, but the two countries differ on aid. “According to Germany, France provides too little financial support. France does not understand Germany’s hesitation about military aid to Ukraine,” says Marseille. The latter can partly be explained by the fact that part of the German population still has a lot of sympathy for Russia.
A definitive accession of Ukraine to NATO is therefore too long a bridge that will be taken too quickly, thinks Marseille. “But if they can both agree tonight, that would be great news. And that, after all, would make the dinner a success.’
Source: BNR
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