Scholz, Macron and Tusk to meet in Berlin to hash out differences on Ukraine

BERLIN — French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Berlin on Friday to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in an effort to reduce tensions over Ukraine that have spilled out into the open in recent weeks, high-level German and French officials have told POLITICO.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will join the French and German leaders later in the day, according to a German official, marking the first meeting of the “Weimar Triangle,” a dialogue format between the three countries, since Tusk became prime minister of Poland again in December.

The leaders intend the meeting to be a show of unity following a tense period in which Franco-German frictions over Ukraine have descended into an open feud.

Long-simmering tensions began to boil over in late February when Macron refused to rule out sending Western troops to fight in Ukraine, vowing to do “whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war.” A more cautious Scholz shot back, ruling out the use of ground troops from European countries.

Days later, Macron appeared to respond directly to Scholz. "Europe clearly faces a moment when it will be necessary not to be cowards,” he told an audience in Prague. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius replied that Macron’s comments were “something which does not really help solve the issues we have when it comes to helping Ukraine.”

German officials complain privately that while Macron has talked tough on Ukraine, he has not followed up with nearly as much military support as Germany has provided.

Germany's Kiel Institute, which compiles national contributions to Ukraine’s war effort, ranks France as a clear laggard with €640 million in military aid compared to Germany, which has provided or promised €17.7 billion.

The French contest those figures, and counter that they give the weapons that really matter. "France has opted for operational efficiency in its military aid to Ukraine: promise what you can deliver, deliver what you can promise,"Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu recently said in a post on X.

Macron this week  postponed a long-planned visit to Ukraine amid tensions with allies over his increasingly hawkish rhetoric. On Sunday the Elysée Palace announced the visit will now take place in the “next couple of weeks.”

The decision to delay was taken to allow time for talks with allies to yield “tangible results” for Ukraine, a French diplomat, who was granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter, told POLITICO.

Macron is scheduled to arrive at the chancellery in Berlin around noon on Friday for his bilateral talk with Scholz. The Macron-Scholz meeting is to be followed by a trilateral discussion with Tusk.

The leaders have tried to present the Weimar format as vehicle for strengthening European security, though it’s far from clear that the addition of Tusk to the discussion will help smooth longstanding frictions between Scholz and Marcon.

Officials in Tusk's government have expressed sympathy for Macron’s tougher rhetoric, with Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski saying recently that the presence of NATO troops in Ukraine is "not unthinkable."

A senior German official said no concrete decisions or announcements are expected from the Friday talks, whose aim was to send a fresh signal of unity.

Hans von der Burchard and Gordon Repinski reported from Berlin, Clea Caulcutt from Paris.