Paris and Berlin strengthen defense cooperation as Europe seeks greater military autonomy

The leaders of Germany and France pledged today to deepen defense cooperation and counter strong economic competition from China, which they said was exerting strong pressure on Europe through overproduction and an undervalued currency.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron met as part of regular joint government meetings, seeking to overcome tensions after a long-anticipated joint fighter jet project collapsed earlier this year.

"We are doing what is necessary to protect our freedom, our security and our collective defense," Merz said at a joint press conference, where the two leaders presented a list of goals, including missile defense and long-range attack systems.

Both leaders criticized China, which they said was not respecting international trade rules, as it provides its industry with at least eight times the level of state support than is the case in other countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

"We are by no means anti-Chinese, neither in our diplomacy nor in our economy, but we are looking at the situation realistically," Macron said, adding that Europe's trade deficit with China had reached one billion euros ($1,14 billion) a day.

Cooperation in nuclear deterrence

The two leaders have already made suggestions that France cooperate with Germany on nuclear deterrence, following increasingly clear signals from Washington that the United States wants to reduce its defense commitments in Europe.

"We are taking a step-by-step approach here and this could eventually lead to a new doctrine, but it is too early to say that today," Merz said, adding that any cooperation would be complementary to existing arrangements within the NATO alliance.

Macron made it clear that France would retain full responsibility for financing its nuclear deterrent.

"The financing of the French nuclear program will always be provided by France," he said, responding to a question about whether France was considering the possibility of Germany participating in co-financing the program.

The so-called Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program is set to continue despite the decision to abandon plans to develop a joint fighter aircraft, with the cloud-based information systems at the heart of the project being further developed.

"The remaining projects, including those related to the cloud and other areas, continue to progress between our manufacturers," Macron said.