US embassy cable - 05PARIS2863

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 002863 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/WE AND EUR/AGS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/27/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, GM, FR, NATO, EUN 
SUBJECT: EU CONSTITUTION DOMINATES AGENDA OF FRANCO-GERMAN 
MINISTERIAL IN PARIS 
 
REF: A. A) PARIS 2825 
 
     B. B) PARIS 2746 
     C. C) PARIS 2663 
     D. D) PARIS 2604 
     E. E) PARIS 2516 
 
Classified By: Acting DCM Josiah Rosenblatt for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
. 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  President Chirac and Chancellor Schroeder 
used the fifth meeting of the Council of Franco-German 
ministers to support Chirac's efforts to highlight the 
benefits of the EU to a skeptical French public in the run-up 
to the French May 29 referendum on the draft EU 
constitutional treaty (reftels).  While the substance of the 
meeting was supposed to focus on technological and industrial 
cooperation, discussion of the constitutional treaty received 
the preponderance of attention in prepared public remarks and 
during questions at the joint press appearance. Chirac 
emphasized in remarks in the press conference and at the 
Sorbonne later in the day that France would miss an historic 
opportunity if its citizens voted no on the constitutional 
treaty:  "If we vote 'no,'" he said, "we also take the 
responsibility for weakening France and its capacity to 
defend its interests and its value in Europe and the world of 
tomorrow."  On security and defense issues, France and 
Germany discussed the situation in Darfur with France 
expressing a preference for an EU mission (ESDP), assuming an 
appropriate AU request for assistance.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (C) Almost 30 ministers accompanied Chirac and Schroeder 
to the meetings, which were formally dedicated to joint 
projects in industrial innovation.  The co-presidents of a 
joint working group on economic cooperation, created during a 
Franco-German summit last October, presented four projects 
for cooperation (two in technology and two in health), which 
the Council accepted.  Most attention however, was given to 
Chirac's and Schroeder's efforts to boost the French 
government's campaign to persuade voters to vote "yes" on the 
constitutional treaty in the May 29th referendum.  Early in 
the afternoon, the two leaders gave a joint press conference 
at the Elysee Palace, where, after dispensing with remarks on 
the industrial cooperation front, they quickly turned to the 
constitution.  Chirac emphasized to his audience that the 
constitution was largely inspired by French ideas and would 
support the "social model" dear to the French public.  The 
constitutional treaty, he said, will permit France to be 
stronger in Europe, and Europe, stronger in the world. 
 
3.  (C) In both his press conference and Sorbonne remarks, 
Chirac characterized the constitutional treaty as directly 
related to the French Revolution, in one instance calling it 
the "daughter" of 1789.  He emphasized in both instances that 
the relative weight of France and Germany within the Council 
will increase under the treaty's rules, allowing them to 
influence European decision-making. 
 
4. (C)  In neither remarks did Chirac single out the United 
States as a rival center of power that calls for 
counterbalancing by a more united Europe or as a country 
against which the treaty was directed.  He did say in his 
press conference remarks that "to vote yes is also to permit 
Europe to weigh more in the world to defend its interests, 
but also its values, . . .which is not evident in a world 
that evolves like we see it evolving, with the emergence of 
big poles of an international size like China, India, 
tomorrow Brazil and Latin America, like Russia, like the 
United States."  Towards the end of his prepared remarks at 
the press conference, Chirac noted: 
 
-- "So, May 29th. .. the choice will be simple: if we vote 
"no," we take the responsibility to interrupt 50 years of 
European construction, 50 years of the path toward peace, 
democracy, unanimously respected and assured and guaranteed 
at the level of the totality of our continent. And we rest in 
the current situation that everyone recognizes as 
unsatisfactory.  We also leave, make no mistake about it, the 
field free to the partisans of a liberal evolution for 
Europe. 
 
-- "If we vote "no," we also take the responsibility for 
weakening France and its capacity to defend its interests and 
its value in Europe and in the world of tomorrow." 
 
5.  (C)  Schroder took up the pro-EU banner as well, noting 
that Chirac had clearly stated what was at stake.  France and 
Germany, he said, have a very particular responsibility in 
the success of the constitutional treaty and the European 
project because of the lessons they had drawn from history. 
If the treaty is not ratified by all the European states, he 
said, it will weaken Europe.  "The voice of Europe in the 
world club will not make itself be heard more, but much less, 
its voice will be weakened," he said.  The Chancellor noted 
that he remains confident that the 'yes' will win in France. 
What's in play, he said, "is the possibility for our two 
countries to make Europe progress, to press on what is common 
to us." 
 
6.  (C) In his address at the Sorbonne, again, ostensibly to 
celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Franco-German Chamber 
of Commerce and Industry, Chirac devoted a few paragraphs to 
the question of industrial cooperation before turning to the 
question of the constitutional treaty.  Like Schroeder, he 
harkened back to the lessons learned from the "murderous 
conflicts" that long rent Europe.  "We learned from that the 
value of peace," he said, "the peace that the constitutional 
treaty consolidates in tying together our countries by new 
clauses of security and mutual assistance. . .in permitting 
us to go further in the defense of Europe."  Thanks to the 
constitutional treaty, Chirac noted, there would be no 
backtracking possible regarding human rights.  It would make 
the Europeans "cross a historic step."  "We need this 
constitution, he said, " because we want to build a Europe 
based on values and not only on a market. We need it because 
it affirms the European model." He repeated a remark he had 
made in the press conference -- which Schroeder had seconded 
-- that he would not have signed the treaty if it had not 
delivered on these fronts. 
 
7. (C)  Chirac closed his remarks by noting the unity of 
France and Germany on the issue, but preceded that by 
reminding listeners that French and German weight would 
increase on the council under treaty rules, and then laid on 
more negative imagery:  "If Europe doesn't organize itself 
now," he said, "the world won't wait for us.  If Europe 
renounces its political and social ambition, the 
ultra-liberal model will have the field free.  And if France 
breaks the dynamic of the Union and puts itself in the gap, 
it will be less listened to, less followed, less strong when 
it has to defend its interests and values." 
 
8.  (C)  According to Florian Escudie, MFA desk officer 
following security issues, and the German Political 
Counselor, who sat in on some of the meetings, the two sides 
also discussed defense and security concerns.  They reviewed 
progress made to date on ESDP, including on the EU planning 
cell, standing up a FR-GR Battlegroup (with UK, Belgium, and 
Luxembourg) by 2008, and the status of the European Defense 
Agency.  Chirac and Schroeder expressed satisfaction with the 
way the Franco-German battalion had performed at ISAF. 
 
9.  (C) In response to our queries, German Political 
Counselor Benedikt Haller (protect) confirmed that 
discussions on Darfur took place.  The French reportedly 
pushed for an EU mission -- in preference to a NATO mission 
--  assuming the AU eventually makes a request for 
assistance.  Haller noted that that the French preference was 
linked to the constitutional campaign, saying that the French 
had explained that the Elysee would like to point to a 
concrete and positive EU effort to demonstrate to voters the 
benefits of the EU.  Haller did not provide the German 
reaction to this proposal, but said Germany likely would 
follow its "traditional instincts," implying that Berlin 
would seek a compromise position. 
 
10.  (C)  Jean-Pierre Dubois, the head of the French MFA's 
Franco-German unit underlined to us the emphasis on the 
constitution during the day's events.  "It will be a little 
while before we know" if Chirac's and Schroeder's remarks 
were successful in moving public opinion, he said, referring 
to the never-ending polling on the constitutional question 
here.  The MFA was clearly pleased with the press coverage of 
the events, which presented the public with several examples 
of what he called Chirac's "well-argued" points in favor of 
the constitution.  If upcoming polls should reflect movement 
in public opinion towards more support for the proposed 
constitution, Chirac will take credit for that even though a 
complex range of factors are shaping the opinion of an uneasy 
and volatile electorate.  Dubois also drew our attention to 
the cooperation agreements signed during the day, which will 
enhance student and teacher exchanges, and aid researchers' 
mobility, among other things.  He noted that all four 
projects that the co-presidents of the working group had 
presented had been approved. 
 
11.  (C) AFP interviewed Jean-Marie LePen, head of the 
extreme right-wing National Front party, who said Chirac and 
Schroeder reminded him of the "blind and the crippled," and 
said the two had no hope of changing public opinion.  LePen 
himself admitted he had so far taken a back seat in the 'no' 
campaign so as not to turn off possible voters.  "We're going 
to kick off on May 1 at the Opera," he said, "because I 
believe that will be the biggest meeting of the "no' camp of 
the entire campaign." 
 
 
WOLFF