With developments in the Middle East being the major issue of recent days, French President Emmanuel Macron visits Germany and meets with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Hamburgwhere, as has been planned for a long time, a joint meeting of the governments of Germany and France will take place today and tomorrow.

The aim of this meeting is to reduce, as far as possible, the divergence of views between Berlin and Paris on issues such as the place of nuclear energy in Europe, industrial policy, reform of the EU stability pact and European defence.

Arriving in Hamburg, the French president made, as expected, statements related to the developments in Gaza, underlining that nothing can explain or justify the attack by Hamas and that France, like Germany, is on Israel’s side. The fight against terrorism is a joint fight, also said the French president, who together with the German chancellor will participate in a video conference with the US president and the British prime minister.

In the meantime, as it became known today in Paris from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France, two French citizens have lost their lives in Gaza, while for some others there is no information as to their whereabouts.