Steinmeier's farewell visit to Paris in stormy times

A state visit as "encouragement in stormy times" - these are the words you hear from the Federal President's Office about the trip to France. Above all, Frank-Walter Steinmeier's visit is a farewell visit: Steinmeier will leave office in March 2027, Emmanuel Macron after the French presidential elections in April. It will therefore be a matter of consolidating cooperation before even more stormy times begin.

At the presidential level, things have gone well between the two countries in recent years. Macron and Steinmeier get along. That's why Steinmeier will be given a special honor in Paris on Thursday: a reception at the Arc de Triomphe and a visit to the Panthéon, the national hall of fame, where heads of state are rarely allowed. That was often the case in German-French relations: a lot of symbolism, magnificent backdrops. The problem: Collaboration on specific projects is not always fruitful.

“A lot was broken”

The joint FCAS fighter jet project, for example, was officially ended in the summer of 2026 - the interests of both countries were too different. “Of course a lot was broken,” says Franziska Brantner, leader of the Green Party and member of the political delegation accompanying the Federal President. She sees the failed project as a "sign that there is not enough vehemence to move Europe forward." Merz has repeatedly worked with confessions in German-French relations. “The action was often lacking afterwards,” criticizes Brantner.

Jacob Ross, political scientist at the German Foreign Policy Society, now diagnoses a "fundamental disappointment" on the French side. In 2025, after the election of Friedrich Merz, there were “hopes for a common European awakening”. Now the impression in France is that the current federal government "does not have the courage to consistently address long-term European sovereignty and free itself from dependencies, especially on the USA."

Opportunities for collaboration

After the symbolic stops in Paris, the trip will also focus on common security and defense interests. On Friday, the delegation in Bordeaux will visit, among other things, a space start-up and other research institutions. This is exactly where Jakob Ross sees opportunities: In space, in intelligence exchange or in other cutting-edge technologies, France and Germany will "necessarily be able to work more closely together in the future, because otherwise both countries will fall behind in international comparison," says Ross.

Roland Theis (CDU), who is traveling with us as chairman of the German-French parliamentary group, agrees that exactly such topics should be “at the top of the German-French agenda”. There is a need to “better develop joint strategic capabilities for essential weapon systems.”