Macron-Merz Talks Revive Franco-German FCAS Program

Never ending story Another Reprieve for FCAS

2026-04-28 Source: dpa 1 min Reading Time

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced new talks on the Franco‑German FCAS following a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Macron said on Friday at the sidelines of an EU summit in Cyprus that the defence ministries in Berlin and Paris had been tasked with work over the coming weeks. A mediation effort in the months‑long dispute over the project collapsed last week.

“The defence ministries should work on different topics, not only the fighter of the future but on various levers of cooperation between our two countries,” Macron said. He described his conversation with Merz on Friday morning as “a good discussion”.

The chancellor did not comment immediately. A government spokesperson said the air‑combat system had been “discussed in detail” during the morning meeting and confirmed that the two defence ministers were to “work on different strands of cooperation”. “This work will be completed in the coming weeks,” she added.

Under existing plans, the joint FCAS programme was to include, in addition to a new manned fighter, drones and new communications systems, and to become operational from the 2040s. A leadership dispute between the industrial partners Dassault and Airbus has delayed the project for months.

After the failed mediation attempt, the mediators in Paris reportedly asked for more time. They are due to present their findings on Tuesday, ten days later than originally scheduled.

Merz publicly questioned the project for the first time in February, citing the differing requirements for a next‑generation fighter. In both Germany and France there have recently been growing calls to develop two different fighters and to limit bilateral cooperation to drones and other components.

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