50th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty: Europe needs a strong and united Franco-German partnership more than ever

France and Germany will tomorrow celebrate the 50th anniversary of the signature of the Elysée Treaty by then French President Charles De Gaulle and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer.

"Franco-German reconciliation was already initiated on 9 May 1950 with the Robert Schuman Declaration. On 22 January 1963, De Gaulle and Adenauer sealed the two countries' lasting friendship," said Joseph Daul MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament.

"Thanks to the clear-sightedness of two Statesmen, but also thanks to all the men and women who, on both sides of the Rhine, contributed to writing this new page in history, France and Germany once and for all closed the chapter on war, to build the European project together. Since then, the Franco-German partnership has never stopped playing a fundamental role as the driving force in Europe," Joseph Daul underlined.

"Fifty years later, the world has changed, as have the challenges for European countries, but the solution remains the same: it is the continuation of the European project. The Franco-German partnership has a decisive role to play here. More than ever, Europe needs a strong and united partnership between the German and the French," the EPP Group Chairman concluded.