Germany and France once saw FCAS as the future of European defense, but political rifts and industrial rivalry now threaten the project itself.
Matthias Krupa has been ZEIT’s correspondent in France since fall 2021. He writes about political and social developments in our neighboring country and analyzes their implications for Europe. He has worked for ZEIT’s political department since 2001, and from 2011 to 2016, he was the European correspondent in Brussels. He has reported from more than a dozen European countries, covering the rise of nationalists, the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, and tensions between Eastern and Western Europe.
Germany and France once saw FCAS as the future of European defense, but political rifts and industrial rivalry now threaten the project itself.
Europe is fortunate to have sensible men leading the UK, Poland and France: Keir Starmer, Donald Tusk and Emmanuel Macron. Germany’s likely next chancellor, Friedrich Merz, could be a crucial addition to this united front against the challenges posed by Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.