Crises bring Paris and Berlin closer

It all looked like a new beginning: the German chancellor and French president threw their entire political weight behind bringing peace to Ukraine. It came as a surprise when on February 11, the two negotiated first with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and then with Russia's leader, Vladimir Putin.

From the beginning, the prospects for success of their mediation were low, and the pessimism of many observers has since been confirmed. But the Franco-German action earned all the more praise: It was an expression of responsibility that paid no heed to political calculation - but also a sign of rapprochement between Berlin and Paris after a lot of disagreement.

The unity they showed after the Islamist attacks on the French satirical magazine "Charlie Hebdo" in January was another indication of togetherness. This was not always so. Until recently, second-tier German and French politicians often launched venomous attacks at each other, and the meetings between Merkel and Hollande seemed to be little more than routines of state. Different positions in economic and fiscal policy often meant dispute was inevitable. The Germans, it was said, liked to boss others around, while the French were resistant to change.

So does that mean it takes major conflicts around the world to bring the two together again?

'Values that unite'

Claire Demesmay, a French member of the German Council on Foreign Relations, replied in the affirmative: "These crises have brought the Franco-German relationship under Merkel and Hollande to a new level - in terms of working together as well as on the human level. Both the Ukraine conflict and the attacks in Paris are matters of security and peace, values that unite us."

Merkel had long been a key negotiator in the Ukraine crisis. Involving Hollande so prominently was a crafty move, said Frank Baasner, head of the German-French Institute in Ludwigsburg. Both, he said, wanted to show they weren't acting alone: It wasn't a matter of German interests, but European interests. If Merkel had continued without Hollande, it would have appeared: "as if Germany totally dominated European politics, and that's never good."

Demesmay said the Ukraine question wasn't the only place for joint diplomacy. The two countries' foreign ministers, Laurent Fabius and Frank-Walter Steinmeier, appeared together not only in Kyiv, but also for example in North Africa. "They want to show that the old roles - Germany is responsible for the East, France for the South - are no longer relevant."

Papering over cracks?

However, such actions cannot conceal differences in economic policy. The French government has long relied on government stimulus programs and fought against a unilateral European austerity policy allegedly imposed by Germany. It has great difficulties in getting political backing for reforms in its own country. Demesmay said this is partly because "the French political system thrives on political polarization and therefore always leads to a right-left confrontation. In this way, most conservatives oppose the plans of the socialist government, even if they themselves advocate reforms."

Differences of opinion on economic, financial and budgetary issues "will remain because both countries have different interests and approaches on these issues." Demesmay believes, however, that "the approach of the past few weeks could lead to both sides showing more willingness to compromise."

Baasner already sees such signs in behavior towards Greece. "The new Greek government has even tried to drive a wedge into the common European monetary policy and has not succeeded. This shows that the French government knows that the direction is not altogether wrong."

Back to a middle course

Something else has changed in France: After the Islamist attacks in Paris, the French people came together politically and socially. The president, until then the most unpopular head of state in decades, suddenly grew in the public reputation through his prudent yet decisive action. Baasner says the political center in France was strengthened, at least temporarily, and the far-right National Front weakened.

It's hard to say yet whether this will affect the next presidential elections in 2017. "The attacks will shape the political culture of France in the long term, but have not fundamentally changed the political interrelationships," Demesmay said. During her visit to Paris, the German chancellor encountered a politically divided and economically insecure country. But at least atmospherically, the mood between the two countries - and between Merkel and Hollande - has improved significantly.