Mini Field Trip to the German-Franco border region

The visit started with a tour of the Franco-German Brigade during which participants gained first-hand insights into the daily lives of the soldiers through a presentation of their equipment, a dinner consisting of military rations, and an overnight stay in the barracks. The following day, the participants were able to discuss the practical challenges of binational military cooperation and the brigade’s role in the defence of Europe with Commander General de Brigade François-Xavier Elias.

A visit to the Memorial Hartmannswillerkopf highlighted the historical dimension of Franco-German relations: The memorial vividly illustrated how a former battlefield could become a symbol of reconciliation and shared European culture of remembrance. At the subsequent reception hosted by Ambassador Heike Thiele in Strasbourg, the discussions centred on current developments in Franco-German relations.

The third and final day focused on the civil society and media dimension of cross-border cooperation. A visit to ARTE demonstrated the success of the Europeanisation of the programme beyond Germany and France, as well the challenges that disinformation and structural changes in the media landscape pose to broadcasters.

The trip concluded with a discussion with Cathrin Gräber, German Secretary-General of the Franco-German Secretariat of the Crossborder Cooperation Committee (AGZ), and Dr Stefan Seidendorf, Deputy Director of the Deutsch-Französisches Institut (dfi). It became evident that, despite institutional progress, administrative hurdles continue to challenge cross-border cooperation and that a high degree of coordination and perseverance is required.

In conclusion, the trip demonstrated that Franco-German cooperation is not merely an abstract political project, but a living reality. It manifests itself in the everyday lives of a wide range of stakeholders and is an expression of the European idea. At the same time, it became evident that its success depends largely on continuous political will and appropriate institutional and legal frameworks – whilst individual commitment becomes particularly visible where these reach their limits.

Since 2005, over 15 Field Trips of the Körber Network Foreign Policy have taken place in more than 20 countries.