France and Germany’s relationship questioned as Scholz goes alone on policy

French officials, however, have denied any sort of tensions, but they have acknowledged that Germany’s three-party coalition makes any sort of agreement slower to achieve.

“This has been blown out of proportion,” a French official, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of this issue, told CNBC about the tension between Paris and Berlin.

The changes to the original gathering have been linked to calendar issues, with German ministers reportedly arguing this was a good week for holidays with their families. Le Maire said the postponement had “nothing to do with any kind of political difficulties,” according to Politico.

The same official added that sometimes both countries move “more slowly” on policy than what would be desired, but “we are always discussing with the Germans.”

Nonetheless, they added that the German coalition, in place since December, is relatively new and “there is a learning curve there.”

“It takes a lot of time for them to find a common position,” the official said.

The German government was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.

Scholz said last week that “as far as cooperation with France is concerned, President Macron and I meet very, very often.”

Analysts at political risk consultancy Eurasia Group have also noted that “frustration with Berlin has grown” across Europe.

“While the criticism initially centered around what was perceived by many senior EU officials as Berlin’s limited military support for [Kyiv], member states across the board have now started to criticize Germany’s fiscal and energy policies too,” they said in a note Tuesday.

“Disappointment with Berlin has now gone so far that it actually risks weakening the Franco-German alliance—the EU’s single most important bilateral relationship,” they added.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/26/france-and-germanys-relationship-questioned-as-scholz-goes-alone-on-policy.html