President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, May 26, started the first state visit to Germany by a French head of state in 24 years, a three-day trip meant to underline the strong ties between the European Union's traditional leading powers. The three-day, four-stop visit will seek to emphasize the historic importance of the post-war relationship between the two key EU states, as France next month commemorates 80 years since the D-Day landings that marked the beginning of the end of German World War II occupation.
While Macron is a frequent visitor to Germany as Paris and Berlin try to coordinate their positions on EU and foreign policy, this is the first state visit with full pomp since Jacques Chirac came in 2000. Macron and his wife, Brigitte, are being hosted by Germany's largely ceremonial president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier. It is "proof of the depth of the friendship between France and Germany" that Macron is visiting as Germany celebrates the 75th anniversary of its post-World War II constitution and before it marks the 35th anniversary in November of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Steinmeier said.
Steinmeier is holding a state banquet for Macron at his Bellevue palace in Berlin on Sunday evening before the two presidents travel on Monday to the eastern city of Dresden, where Macron will make a speech on Europe at a European festival, and on Tuesday to Münster in western Germany. The state visit will be followed later Tuesday by a meeting between Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and ministers from both countries at a government guest house outside Berlin.
German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung took note of Macron's planned trip to eastern Germany. "Franco-German relations, which are so important for European stability, have long been primarily a relationship with western Germany," the newspaper said. "This is still largely the case today. But Emmanuel Macron is driven by the ambition to change that."
The visit was originally meant to take place last July but was postponed at the last minute due to rioting in France following the killing of a 17-year-old by police.
Two weeks from elections
Germany and France, which have the EU's biggest economies, have long been viewed as the motor of European integration, though there have often been differences in policy and emphasis between the two neighbors on a range of matters. That was evident earlier this year in different positions on whether Western countries should rule out sending ground troops to Ukraine. Both nations are strong backers of Kyiv.
Macron on Sunday said there has frequently been talk of problems in Franco-German relations over the decades, but "France and Germany together have accomplished extraordinary things — they have been at the heart of this Europe." He contrasted that with the countries' history of war against each other until 1945.
The trip comes two weeks ahead of European elections where polls show, in a major potential embarrassment for Macron, his coalition is trailing well behind the far right and may struggle to even reach third place. The speech in Dresden, a city where the German Alternative for Germany (AfD) garners considerable support, will likely see Macron warn of the danger the far right poses to Europe.
In a keynote address on foreign policy last month, Macron issued a dire warning about the threats to Europe in a changing world in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. "Our Europe, today, is mortal and it can die," Macron said. "It can die and this depends only on our choices."