A German official told reporters: “Germany and France have agreed to a final attempt at mediation between the industries, to be conducted by experts. Due to the upcoming decisions on the federal budget, a result must be reached by mid-April.”
FCAS, which also includes Spain, is intended to replace Germany’s Eurofighter and France’s Rafale jets by around 2040. The program includes a warplane — which lies at the heart of the disagreement between the two defense giants — as well as drones and a combat cloud.
While German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is open to developing two separate planes, Macron has spoken against that option.
POLITICO previously reported that Macron met with Dassault CEO Eric Trappier and Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury last week to discuss the project. The topic was also discussed at a bilateral meeting between the French president and German chancellor on Wednesday.
Laura Kayali reported from Paris, and Giorgio Leali and Hans von der Burchard reported from Brussels.