3 major crises behind a secret dispute between Germany and France

France and Germany, the European Union’s two largest economies, usually seek to hide differences, show unity and adjust common positions before meetings with their EU counterparts, but as leaders gather for a summit in Brussels on Thursday, divisions over how to tackle the energy crisis It proved too profound to be overlooked.

On the sidelines of the summit, French President Emmanuel Macron criticized Germany’s behavior in the current energy crisis in Europe, accusing it of working to isolate itself, after its refusal to set a ceiling on gas prices.

Although it isn’t the first dispute, it gives clear indications to understand the pattern of disagreement between them, which has gone beyond being a competition for the leadership seat of the European bloc.

This latest dispute is seen as having led Berlin and Paris to postpone a regular meeting at the government level, which was scheduled to take place this month, until next January; This indicates a growing rift between the two main components of the “European Engine”, which has several causes.

Berlin believes it needs more time; to be able to find common ground with Paris in several matters, most notably the issue of energy sources, management and prices.

The first controversy: the energy crisis

Is the dispute over how to manage the energy crisis only, or are there many points of disagreement?

German and French officials describe the ongoing negotiations between the two sides as numerous and very difficult, the most important of which are in terms of energy and the way to manage the crisis.

There are several points of disagreement, capping prices… As Berlin rejects the authorities’ interference in the markets; it believes that setting a ceiling on gas prices will lead to more consumption, and perhaps push producers to sell their shares of gas in other places; Which brings negative effects on European production as a whole.

The German position is supported by some northern countries, including the Netherlands and Denmark, which agree that setting energy prices will do more harm to the economy than benefit it.

While Paris sees in this vision that Germany does not put France and the rest of the European family among its priorities; rather, it follows a unilateral, isolated model in its decisions, which upset France.

France’s claims don’t seem far from reality.

The German government has prepared an aid plan with financial resources of 200 billion euros, to support families and companies; to alleviate the burdens caused by the rise in gas and electricity prices.

This didn’t anger France alone.

Some countries of the Union were deeply disturbed by the decision, which was taken without consulting it.

Where it considered that such huge payments may lead to chaos in the internal market of the European Union.

This comes as France reached an agreement with Spain and Portugal to build the Medcat energy pipeline, linking the Iberian Peninsula with the rest of Europe, reviving a project long sought by Berlin but opposed by Paris.

Although France retracted its opposition and agreed to build the pipeline after changing its name to the “Green Energy Corridor”, analysts believe – contrary to what Europe is promoting – that it needs a lot of time, not just 9 months; Even years, given its length, which extends to about 900-1000 km.

In addition, it cannot compensate for the quantities used by Germany (the largest importer of natural gas in the world) of Russian gas, which represents 55.2% of the total imported gas on which the industrial sector depends heavily.

Second: The dispute over the European combat project

On matters other than energy, French and European officials said Berlin had also rejected French proposals to develop what is known defensively as the “Future Air Combat System”.

It is a European defense project launched by Berlin and Paris in 2017, and was considered a mainstay of defense policy and military procurement in the region, through which the European Union aspires to develop a fighter to replace the French “Rafale” and the German “Typhoon” by 2040, serving as the backbone for all countries of the continent after 2040.

Berlin surprised its ally when it decided to purchase F-35 fighters, which Paris didn’t like, if it considered that choosing an American weapon sends the wrong message, at a time when the focus should be on strengthening European capabilities.

This program suffers from several disagreements over technology sharing and leadership of important parts of it; this led to the withdrawal of the French company “Dassault” from it, which illustrates the difficulty of European industrial cooperation, and the lack of trust between the two European neighbors.

Third: Differences in visions about arms and European sovereignty

In fact, the biggest point of contention is always in the field of defense, other than the lack of consensus on the European fighter, Germany and 13 other NATO countries decided to purchase a unified air defense system.

On the other hand, France was enraged; because it believes that the decision undermines the idea of ​​European sovereignty, which France stresses; where the defense system will enter American and Israeli industries.

Despite the solidarity shown by Germany and the senior leaders of the European Union with France over the Australian submarine deal crisis, Germany and countries within the Union see Paris’s wrath as nothing but an attempt to attract support and influence for French arms companies, noting that the German arms industry witnessed a decline and humility after World War II.

The escalation of the war in Ukraine hastened the emergence of differences between Paris and Berlin within the same European house, which don’t stop at the differing models and method of solving crises in the two countries regarding how to protect the economies of the Union countries. Rather, it went beyond the comprehensive vision of the Union and its sovereignty.

While France advocates the idea of ​​European sovereignty and a move away from US dependency and the (clinically dead) NATO, as Macron described it, Germany looks more pragmatically at its policy through alliances and agreements.