Sixty years ago, on January 22, 1963, Germany and France signed the Élysée Treaty. With this historic agreement, the two countries made – after three bloody wars – reconciliation, cooperation and friendship the central elements of their common destiny.
Today, we are thankful and proud when we look back at the signature of the Treaty . The reconciliation of our two countries and their people after the horrors of the wars, especially WWII, paved the way for our strong friendship and partnership.
This 60th Franco-German Friendship day will be honoured with a Ministerial Council bringing together the cabinets with all the ministers of our governments. Our clear message is: Germany and France are each other’s most important partner and closest ally, cooperation goes across the board and in all relevant sectors, from economic and finance policy to the environment, from education to security and foreign affairs and from technology to culture and youth.
The value of our bilateral relations is founded on the strong people-to-people relations, especially in our border regions. Together we have achieved a lot and made concrete improvements in the lives of our citizens, be it through cross-border university cooperation, youth exchanges or by easing the barriers to taking up employment across the border.
As much as this day is about looking back to the historic treaty of reconciliation, it is also a moment to look ahead at what France and Germany can achieve together.
Three years ago, our countries signed the Aachen Treaty, a treaty that complements the Élysée Treaty and that future-proofs our relations. Not always do Germany and France start their discussions from the same positions and with the same interests, but in our common and in the European interest we always work intensively on finding common and constructive solutions. Often these solutions then form the basis for a common European position.
What’s next? Within the framework of the European Union we want to further intertwine our societies, our politics and our economies. Together we want to strengthen the European Union and make it more resilient, improve its common security and defence policy and its ability to take action.
The Russian attack on Ukraine has shown us once again how vital it is that we speak with a common voice on strategic questions of foreign policy, especially in our direct neighbourhood. Russia has not succeeded in dividing the European Union, instead we are working together more closely than ever before, in partnership with our transatlantic allies and our friends around the world in order to stop the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
While our common voice is currently needed most urgently as a reaction to the Russian attack on Ukraine, we also find it important to speak with a strong common voice on regional and on global questions, such as climate change, human rights and humanitarian assistance.
This is especially true for our engagement in Africa. Here in Kenya and in the East African region we work hand in hand. Just last week our foreign ministers, Annalena Baerbock and Catherine Colonna, jointly visited Ethiopia and the headquarters of the African Union to send a clear message of support regarding both the Ethiopian peace process and the panafrican efforts to deepen political cooperation and economic integration.
France and Germany are working together to achieve concrete results: Together we have financed the transportation of a Ukrainian donation of 50,000 tonnes of wheat to East Africa. We stand in solidarity with the people in Africa who are facing one of the worst food crisis in the last decades, with food price increases and shortages that are also triggered by the Russian attack on Ukraine.
In Kenya, our two countries work closely together in the area of technical and vocational training, a priority both for us and for the Government of Kenya. We are currently working on possibilities to strengthen the digitalisation of TVET in Kenya to meet the demands of the local labour market.
Supporting TVET will allow Kenya to use the talents and potential of its people for the economic development of the country. We also want to intensify the economic and trade relations between our countries and Kenya.
The EU-Kenya business forum in February will be an important step on this way and will bring large French and German business delegations to Kenya.
In the cultural sector our cultural institutes, Goethe Institut and Alliance Francaise, are working closely together in bringing together Kenyans and Europeans interested in cultural exchange and learning.
When celebrating our friendship on this historic day, we as France and Germany stand together as close friends and look ahead in a positive spirit, despite our challenging times.
Together we know we can use the strength of our partnership for developing further the good relations with our partners worldwide, in Kenya and internationally.
Vive l’amitié franco-allemande, es lebe die deutsch-französische Freundschaft!
Arnaud Suquet is the French Ambassador to Kenya (@FranceinKenya) and Sebastian Groth is the German Ambassador to Kenya (@GermanyinKenya)
