As Germany welcomes a new Chancellor, the French press is asking if this will revive the Franco-German friendship, hoping that Macron and Merz will get along as well as Giscard and Schmidt, Mitterrand and Kohl, and better than Sarkozy and Merkel.
However, the Gapsmoov intercultural model describes three states of mind towards a partner, in both business and politics:
- Friendship: This involves sharing the same values, a prerequisite for building trust and “dealing” together.
- Connection: This means leveraging “natural affinities” between two personalities to facilitate a favorable agreement.
- Transaction: This is purely business-focused, even if a courteous demeanor is maintained (“I am friendly with everyone but I have very few friends”).
The French cultural preference leans towards connection, while the German preference is for transaction. Therefore, “Franco-German friendship” is, culturally speaking, a misconception.
Three figures are enough to prove this: Germany buys 38% of its weaponry from the United States and 5% from France, which is nevertheless the world’s second-largest exporter. As a friend, you can find better.
In reality, the French vision of Europe is conceptual, and the German vision is pragmatic. For “mainstream” French politicians, Europe is primarily a globalist entity embodying democratic values. For German politicians, it’s primarily a market.
Illustration: Germany has promoted an energy framework at the European level that aligns with its preference for renewables, to the detriment of French nuclear power. Out of diplomacy, French leaders let this happen.
All of this, rightly or wrongly, doesn’t imply a “good” or “bad” approach. There are simply different approaches: the French and the German. It’s crucial to be aware of them and understand them well, rather than falling into naiveté.
On the Gapsmoov platform, see the gaps:
- Between friendship and transaction.
- Between pragmatism and conceptualization.
