France and Germany to fete 50 years of landmark, post-war pact

French President Francois Hollande arrived in the snowy German capital late on Monday to join Chancellor Angela Merkel for a hectic line-up of events to fete the Elysee Treaty, inked in 1963 when both were eight years old.

Eighteen years after the end of World War II, then French president Charles de Gaulle and West German chancellor Konrad Adenauer formalized on Jan. 22 the cooperation that has since been at the heart of European unity.

Both countries' governments are due to gather at the chancellery, while lawmakers from France's National Assembly will also join their Bundestag counterparts for a two-hour debate in the historic Reichstag building.

Merkel and Hollande are scheduled to give a joint press conference.

The day wraps up with a concert at the Berlin Philharmonic hall, including music by Beethoven and French composer Camille Saint-Saens.

After Hollande's arrival in Berlin, he and Merkel sought to present a unified front during a televised debate with about 200 German and French youth, despite tensions from the euro crisis which has propelled Berlin into Europe's driving seat.

On military matters too, Paris and Berlin have limited cooperation, as the current crisis in Mali and Germany's nonintervention in Libya in 2011, have shown, but Merkel sought to play down their differences.

“Step by step we will always weigh up, can we do that, or can't we...,” she said, insisting that Germany would not leave its partner high and dry.

While French troops are fighting alongside Malian forces against Islamist militants in the West African state, Germany has pledged two military transport planes and 1 million euros (US$1.3 million) in humanitarian aid.

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