France, Germany Propose Dual Presidency for EU

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, January 15, 2003

France, Germany Propose Dual Presidency for EU

France and Germany agreed on Tuesday to propose a dual presidency for two sectors within the European Union (EU).

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France and Germany agreed on Tuesday to propose a dual presidency for two sectors within the European Union (EU).

Under the agreement reached in talks between French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, the president of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, will be elected by the European Parliament and the president of the European Council elected by EU ministers.

After their talks, Chirac told the press that France accepted Germany's proposal that a Commission president be elected by the European Parliament, and Germany agreed with Paris that a president of the European Council would be elected by a qualified majority of EU ministers for either a five-year or a two-and-a-half-year term.

"This Franco-German contribution to the job of the European Convention, will be presented Wednesday to Convention President Valery Giscard d'Estaing and heads of state and government of the EU's 15 members and all candidate countries," said Chirac.

The initiative "shows that the German-Franco motor, which is essential for the European integration, functions and functions well," he added.

The European Convention was set up last spring to prepare a constitutional treaty for the soon-to-be 27-member EU.

Schroeder said the two countries started from different positions. But both Chirac and Schroeder agreed that the two nations "have decided to take one step towards the other."

In the debate over the future of Europe, Germany has favored a federal Europe, and boosted the role of the European Commission by

having its president elected and presiding over both Commission and Council.

But France had expected to promote an inter-governmental approach with a new president of the European Council that groups EU member states.

The compromise hammered out on Tuesday night would not only reinforce the Commission but also the European Parliament, said Schroeder.

In the meantime, Germany "understands the wish of France to give more stability to the Council."

France and Germany consider as top priority the revival of the so-called Franco-German motor, which has driven the European construction in the past but has come under some strain in recent years following disputes ranging from European institutional reforms to farm subsidies.

A formal Chirac-Schroeder summit is scheduled for Jan. 22 and 23 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Elysee Treaty by former French president, Charles de Gaulle, and former German chancellor, Konrad Adenauer.

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