The Commissioner for Franco-German Cooperation

Minister of State Michael Georg Link

Minister of State Michael Georg Link

Minister of State Michael Georg Link

On 1 February 2012, Federal Chancellor Merkel appointed Michael Georg Link, Minister of State for Europe, to act as Germany’s Commissioner for Franco-German Cooperation.

On the French side, Thierry Repentin, the Minister responsible for European Affairs in the French Foreign Ministry, became Link’s opposite number as Commissioner on 19 March 2013.

The Commissioners are responsible for coordinating Franco-German cooperation at the governmental level. Their work makes it possible for all the ministries to prepare joint projects which the Franco-German Council of Ministers can then enact.

A key focus of their work is their engagement in regional and cross-border cooperation. They play their part in ensuring that Franco-German relations are deepened at a local level, too, by attending meetings in the French Regions and the German Länder and maintaining contact with those responsible locally.

On 22 January 2003, the fortieth anniversary of the signing of the Élysée Treaty, the German and French Governments expressed their desire to deepen their cooperation by establishing a biannual Franco-German Council of Ministers and also creating the office of Commissioner for Franco-German Cooperation in each of the two countries.

The Commissioners, each of whom is assisted by a Deputy Commissioner from the Foreign Ministry of the other country, work to strengthen ties between the respective civil societies and also to promote cooperation between the two countries, particularly within the framework of the European Union.

Franco-German cooperation

In terms of cooperation with the 27 EU member states, the Franco-German partnership holds a particularly prominent position because of its history, intensity and special institutional architecture. As part of the twelfth Franco-German Council of Ministers held in Paris on 4 February 2010, Germany and France set joint goals for deepening their cooperation in the next ten years. The Cabinets of both Governments agreed on a “Franco-German Agenda 2020”, with a total of 80 proposals for joint projects.

Last updated 21.03.2013