France/Franco-German Relations

Er lässt sich als Europas größter Trumpf in der Krise bezeichnen: Seit zwanzig Jahren ist der Europäische Binnenmarkt vertragliche Realität – und bietet ganz konkrete Vorteile für Unternehmen und Verbraucher. Vertreter der europäischen Institutionen, aus den Mitgliedstaaten, Unternehmen und der Wissenschaft würdigten dies und erörterten die Möglichkeiten des Binnenmarktes bei einer gemeinsamen Veranstaltung der DGAP, der Vertretung der EU-Kommission in Berlin und der Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung.

How much potential does the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership hold for Germany, France, and Morocco? Which experiences can the three countries share during the process of regionalization? How can they deal with their past? During a four-day seminar, 30 participants from Germany, France, and Morocco discussed common topics and ongoing issues for Mediterranean policy, thus opening up the Franco-German Future dialogue to the Mediterranean region.

What lessons can Germany and France draw from the discrepancies in their security and defense policies regarding the intervention in Libya? Where do both countries stand regarding potential reforms to the Schengen treaty? Are current debates about integration in Germany and France comparable? These topics were discussed by participants of the 2nd annual Franco-German Future Dialogue that took place in Marseille from June 29 to July 1.

“People remember differently in Germany and France,” said French political scientist and publicist Alfred Grosser. But “the differences in the cultures of remembrance become blurred,” answered his countryman Etienne François, a former professor of political science at the Free University in Berlin. Beside this national distinctiveness lies a common Franco-German memory that has long existed. Has this helped German foreign policy on its path toward “normalization”?