Merz and Macron seal closer military cooperation and nuclear exercise in Brühl

At the center of the talks was the participation of German conventional forces in a nuclear exercise of the French army. "This includes the participation of German conventional forces still this year in a nuclear exercise of the French armed forces," the final declaration of the ministerial council stated. Merz emphasized that this first participation of the Bundeswehr was "komplementär zu unserer nuklearen Teilhabe und der Abschreckung in der NATO, an der wir festhalten". Macron declared that the aim of the cooperation was "die Sicherheit des europäischen Kontinents zu verbessern und bei unseren Gegnern mehr Unsicherheit zu schaffen, indem wir der nuklearen Abschreckung weitere Wege und Mittel eröffnen".

Nuclear exercise at the core of the agreement

The chancellor justified the fact that not all details of the exercise would be disclosed with a view to its strategic effect: "Denn vollständige und absolute Transparenz ist gegenüber Gegnern auf europäischen Boden nicht unbedingt die wirksamste Strategie." Not everything that was done would therefore always be disclosed 100 percent. An initial concrete demonstration of the new cooperation had already taken place the day before: fighter jets from both countries carried out a joint aerial refueling exercise. The deployment of French Rafale fighter jets to Nörvenich in North Rhine-Westphalia was an "erster operativer Schritt der strategischen Zusammenarbeit", according to the council's final declaration.

Industrial cooperation in aviation was also reorganized. After the failure of the joint Future Combat Air System (FCAS), Berlin and Paris agreed to jointly further develop a "system of systems" that networks aircraft, drones, and other components of air combat systems. "FCAS war nie allein ein neues Kampfflugzeug, sondern war immer ein System", Merz stressed. This was to ensure the "Interoperabilität aller europäischen Luftsysteme". The Franco-German Air Transport Wing at Évreux in France is to reach full operational capability by the end of 2026.

Industrial cooperation after the end of FCAS

Merz praised the venue as a deliberate signal. Sixty-four years after the historic meeting between de Gaulle and Adenauer, the ministerial council was meeting precisely where the foundation of the Franco-German partnership had been laid. He thanked Macron "für das Vertrauen und auch den Elan, den dieser Rat geprägt hat, und den Du geprägt hast in diesem deutsch-französischen Ministerrat". Both sides stressed that the cooperation was to "ergänzen und nicht ersetzen" NATO's nuclear deterrence and sharing – an indication that the European pillar is expressly not intended to compete with the Atlantic alliance.

For Macron, it was presumably the last Franco-German ministerial council of his term of office. In early July, the right-wing populist Marine Le Pen had announced her candidacy for the presidential election in spring 2027, in which Macron can no longer run. Merz nevertheless portrayed the partnership as enduring: "Die deutsche Hand bleibt immer ausgestreckt zur vertieften und vertrauensvollen Zusammenarbeit mit Frankreich", he said. "Ich kann aus deutscher Sicht nur sagen, wir werden auch in Zukunft alles tun, um diese Zusammenarbeit mit unserem französischen Nachbarn so intensiv und so tief und vertrauensvoll wie möglich zu gestalten, ganz unabhängig davon, wie die Wählerinnen und Wähler in Frankreich entscheiden werden." Macron replied: "Wir zählen auf Euch, und Ihr könnt auf uns zählen."

Looking ahead to the 2027 presidential election

That a possible victory for Le Pen would put the partnership to a stress test is also confirmed by expert analysis. Stefan Seidendorf, deputy director of the Franco-German Institute in Ludwigsburg, told DW that the time since Merz took office had shown "dass es doch sehr große Unterschiede zwischen Frankreich und Deutschland gibt und diese Zusammenarbeit kein Selbstläufer ist, sondern dass man eben hart daran arbeiten muss". Jacob Ross, France expert at the German Council on Foreign Relations, warned: "Zunächst einmal wäre es ein unmittelbarer Vertrauensverlust – in den Verwaltungen und in der politischen Zusammenarbeit, der dazu führen wird, dass an vielen Stellen, wo heute sehr natürlich und organisch miteinander zusammengearbeitet wird, wo Informationen fließen vom einen ins andere Land, das erstmal reißen wird und dann wieder neu angeknüpft werden muss." For Ross, however, it would not mean the end of the Élysée Treaty, "sondern ein sehr heftiger Stresstest für dieses Vertragswerk zwischen Deutschland und Frankreich, auch für die europäische Integration".

Against the backdrop of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, Germany also confirmed its participation in the first exercise of the so-called "Coalition of the Willing," a group of around 35 states being built up to support Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire with Russia. Merz pointed to the importance of the bilateral relationship: "Denn alle wussten: Wenn sich Frankreich und Deutschland nicht einigen, kommt Europa nicht voran." Both heads of state also announced that further negotiations on expanding the European defense market and on nuclear cooperation would continue in the coming months.

Not all observers assessed the talks as entirely positive. Seidendorf was skeptical about the end of the FCAS program: "Diese Idee, dass die Politik darüber entscheiden kann, dass die Konzerne Großprojekte entwickeln, Kampfflugzeuge und Panzer, da ist vielleicht auch die Zeit ein Stück weit darüber hinweggegangen", he said. In his view, it would be more important "dass Frankreich und Deutschland mit anderen zusammen einen europäischen Markt für Rüstungsgüter entwickeln". Seidendorf believes, however, that politicians simply "mögen, denn wenn sie gelingen, können sich Politiker in Szene setzen" such large-scale projects.

Skeptical voices and protest in Brühl

In Brühl itself, the visit of the heads of state did not go unchallenged. According to WDR, around 100 people demonstrated against the meeting on Friday. They held up signs reading "Herz statt Merz," among others. Police were deployed in large numbers; no serious incidents were initially reported. The program ended in the late afternoon with a joint press conference at Augustusburg Palace, at which Merz announced that he would attend the parade for the French national holiday in Paris on 14 July – the last time a German chancellor had been a guest there was in 2019, when the then chancellor Angela Merkel attended.

The largest parade for the French national holiday since Macron took office in 2017 was held under the motto "The Strategic Awakening of Europe." Seidendorf pointed out that Franco-German relations were far more than just the political level. "Im Falle eines Wahlsieges von Le Pen stellt sich bei jedem dieser Kontakte in der Verwaltung, in der Wirtschaft, in der Zivilgesellschaft, bei den Städtepartnerschaften und beim Schüleraustausch die Frage, wie man am besten dabei vorgeht", he said. The chancellor reaffirmed: "Ganz unabhängig davon, wie die Wählerinnen und Wähler in unseren beiden Ländern entscheiden."

Overall, the consultations painted a picture of a partnership that, despite recurring frictions, is being institutionally deepened and militarily expanded. With nuclear sharing, the cooperation has now crossed a threshold that had previously been regarded as politically sensitive in bilateral relations. Both governments assessed the meeting as a historic moment in the spirit of the Élysée Treaty. Macron spoke of a "neuen gemeinsamen Weg" in nuclear deterrence, Merz of a "neuen Fundament" for technological and military cooperation. How robust these commitments are will only become clear in the coming weeks and months – particularly against the backdrop of the French presidential election in 2027 and the further developments in Ukraine.

Side program and security measures

The talks were accompanied by a joint dinner at Augustusburg Palace, attended by government members as well as senior military officers from both countries. In the courtyard of the palace, the national flags of Germany and France were hoisted. The program also included a wreath-laying at the Adenauer-de Gaulle memorial, which commemorates the historic meeting of 1962. Local residents reported that they had not experienced such a heavy police presence in the town center in years as on that day. Deputy government spokesperson Steffen Meyer had previously stressed that the personal