Franco-German relations take a knocking

The EU heads of state and government will finalise plans for securing the euro - the so-called European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) - in Brussels today. The conservative daily Lidové noviny points out how much scepticism the plans of Germany and France met with right from the outset and how much friction there is between the two countries at present: "Nine of the seventeen Eurozone countries want nothing to do with plans for tax harmonisation or a standardised retirement age. What remains after the revision is a collection of general recommendations. The past few days have done much to damage the Franco-German team. Paris is annoyed about Germany's nuclear hysterics. Berlin is concerned about the activities of French fighter jets in Libya. Both these things demonstrate what different interests the two countries, which are basically trying to achieve political union, are pursuing in strategic areas like energy and foreign policy."

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