By Kerstin Gehmlich and James Mackenzie
BERLIN/PARIS (Reuters) – The abrupt cancellation of two high-level Franco-German meetings has revealed new tensions between Paris and Berlin that could cloud France’s presidency of the European Union in the second half of the year.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy have had an uneasy relationship since the French president took power last year, clashing over central bank independence, nuclear power and French plans for a Mediterranean Union.
But officials in both capitals say ties have deteriorated in recent weeks, with communication lines breaking down and Berlin increasingly frustrated with Sarkozy’s restless, go-it-alone style.
On Monday, in a break with normal diplomatic practice, France cancelled a meeting in Paris between the countries’ finance ministers that was to have taken place a day later.
The reason? French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde had to accompany Sarkozy to a rural health centre and Louis Vuitton workshop.
That news came only days after Paris put off a meeting between Merkel and Sarkozy, scheduled for March, because of the French president’s busy diary.
Eckart von Klaeden, a Merkel ally and foreign policy expert in her Christian Democrats (CDU), said the delay in the March meeting was understandable, but Lagarde’s abrupt cancellation this week was not.
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DISBELIEF AND SCORN
The EU’s expansion to 27 members has limited the ability of France and Germany to push through decisions on their own, but the two remain the key driver of policy within the bloc. When Paris and Berlin are at odds, Europe struggles to move forward.
Before Sarkozy took office, he and Merkel were hailed as like-minded conservatives, united in their fondness for the United States and aversion to Turkey’s bid to join the EU.
But their differences, in both style and substance, have garnered more attention in recent months.
German officials have watched Sarkozy’s hyper-active first nine months in office — notably his very public romance with supermodel-turned-singer and now first lady Carla Bruni — with a mixture of disbelief and scorn.
The contrast with Merkel, a discreet, consensus-seeker whose own marriage to publicity-shy chemistry professor Joachim Sauer is off-limits to the German press, could not be greater.
The clash of personalities and rising tensions on major policy issues threaten to weigh on France’s EU presidency, which begins in a mere four months, analysts warn.
Sarkozy aims to launch his Mediterranean Union at a summit in Paris on July 13-14, with the Mediterranean states attending the first day and other EU states joining to bless the initiatives on “Bastille Day” — a French national holiday.
But Merkel has branded the idea of the Union divisive, saying it sidelines non-Mediterranean EU states.
Top Sarkozy adviser Henri Guaino travelled to Berlin this month to explain the French position and overcome German objections, but the meetings were unsuccessful, a source close to Sarkozy’s office said.
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DOMESTIC WOES
Martin Koopmann from the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) said finding a solution before July was crucial.
“If until then, there’s no solution on who’s meeting whom and under what framework, we could have a serious Franco-German crisis, which will have an impact on other political issues which are on the agenda during the French EU presidency.”
Other analysts say the cancelled meetings may have more to do with Sarkozy’s domestic woes than differences with Merkel.
Sarkozy’s popularity ratings have slumped amid anger at the rising cost of living and public disapproval of his romance with Bruni. French media are speculating about a government reshuffle after municipal elections in March.
“There’s clearly a lot going on in the French government at the moment,” said Simon Tilford, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform in London.
“It does seem as though Sarkozy is placing huge demands on many of his cabinet ministers and that as much as anything else may have prompted (Lagarde) to pull out” of this week’s cancelled meeting with the Germans, he said.
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