|
|
Article: Je t'aime, ich auch nicht; Franco-German relations.(The weaker Franco-German relationship)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- June 5, 2004
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Behind the smiles for the cameras, the Franco-German relationship is more fragile than meets the eye
WHEN Germany's Helmut Kohl and France's Francois Mitterrand held hands at the battlefields of Verdun 20 years ago, it was a high point of Franco-German reconciliation. When their successors, Chancellor Gerhard Schroder and President Jacques Chirac, gather in Normandy on June 6th to commemorate the 60th anniversary of D-Day, their meeting will be equally moving and symbolic. It will be the first time a German leader has participated in D-Day celebrations, and will be followed by a Franco-German "reconciliation ceremony" at the Caen Memorial Museum. Yet, this moment ...