France, Germany agree to give next-gen fighter one last chance

BRUSSELS — France and Germany will try one more time to agree on how to jointly develop a next-generation fighter jet — with a deadline in April.

The project, known as the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), has stalled for months because of bitter disagreements between France’s Dassault and Germany’s Airbus Defence and Space, but French and German officials said Thursday they will try to reboot the program.

“They just can’t seem to agree. Our job is to ensure they reach an agreement, so we have jointly decided to launch an initiative to bring Airbus and Dassault closer together in the coming weeks,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters ahead of a European Council meeting. “This must be done in a calm and respectful manner, precisely to identify areas of common ground.”

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.