GERMANY: BADEN BADEN: FRANCO GERMAN SUMMIT

Описание: (8 Dec 1995) French/German/Nat

Seeking a new push toward a united Europe, the leaders of France and Germany on Thursday pledged to uphold the timetable for a single European currency.

The summit in the spa town of Baden Baden may have given French President Jacques Chirac an opportunity to escape the wave of strikes back home. But anti-nuclear protesters rallying against French nuclear testing in the South Pacific made their presence felt.

Lying near the border with France, the peaceful spa town of Baden Baden would seem to be the ideal place for Jacques Chirac to forget some of the more troubling aspects of his presidency.

But with the Madrid European summit only days away, it was clear that the two leaders would have to discuss the French government's present crisis.

Implementing the reforms needed to bring France in line with the criteria set for monetary union, has caused widespread unrest.

French Prime Minister Alain Juppe, traditionally invited to attend these Franco-German summits, has had to stay at home to deal with the crisis.

But the German Chancellor preceded the summit with words of support for the French and their efforts to reform.

SOUNDBITE: (German)
"We know that the friendships between our two countries is essentially based on the contact and exchanges of the people at the border. These borders do not divide, they function as bridges."

SUPER CAPTION: Helmut Kohl, German Chancellor

And the two leaders used the summit to reaffirm their commitment to a more unified Europe.

SOUNDBITE: (German)
"It is part of the lucky experience in the Franco-German cooperation that totally agree in essential points of the monetary and economical union and we both definitely want to stick to the once-set schedule of it."

SUPER CAPTION: Helmut Kohl, German Chancellor

At the post summit news conference, Chirac said he wanted to reaffirm "the determination of France to respect the Maastricht schedule."

And he defended the domestic policy that is dogging his presidency.

SOUNDBITE:
" It's for those people in France, who risk becoming badly off, and the youth for whom it is vital: to open a horizon which is going to allow them to create jobs and to assure them of a social welfare system to a standard and level that the previous generation enjoyed."

SUPER CAPTION: Jacques Chirac, French President

But Chirac refused to answer questions concerning France's recent nuclear tests in the South Pacific. As the summit concluded anti nuclear demonstrators continued to protest against the French tests.

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter:   / ap_archive  
Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​
Instagram:   / apnews  


You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...