France and Italy sign historic Quirinale Treaty given the 'Merkel Exit'

Rome/Paris: – The historic Quirinal Treaty between France and Italy was signed, while Chancellor Angela Merkel took an ‘exit’ from German politics. French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi described the agreement as an ‘historic moment’. The agreement indicates that cooperation between the two countries in the domains of industry, economy, foreign affairs, education and culture, and the Defence sector will be further strengthened.

French President Macron said ‘Both France and Italy are founder members of the European Union. A stronger and more sovereign Europe is the goal of France and Italy, and we are moving in that direction. Our goal will be to make Europe capable of defending and protecting its borders.’ He also claimed that the agreement would further strengthen the friendship between Italy and France.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has called the agreement with France a historic moment. The deal is important for accelerating the process of European unification, Draghi said. The two countries will increase cooperation in energy, technology and space, the Italian prime minister said. Negotiations for the agreement between France and Italy first began in 2017. However, the talks were deferred for some time after that.

The French president had once again taken the initiative to sign the agreement after Draghi took over as the Italian Prime Minister this year. French President Macron also had stepped-up interactions with Draghi on various international platforms. Earlier, a compromise was reached on points of dispute like Libya. Sources claim that France has agreed to some of the demands made by Italy.

The agreement is based on the 1963 Franco-German Pact between France and Germany. The deal has laid the foundation for a long-term partnership between Germany and France in the European Union and played a key role in establishing the European Union. Therefore, the agreement between France and Italy has become very significant. Next year, the ‘rotating presidency’ of the federation will come to France. As this responsibility comes, France will have to face challenges such as the Brexit dispute with Britain, the Coronavirus pandemic, the aggression of Russia, China and resentment in the Eastern European countries.

As the challenges intensify, a major change of guard is taking place in Germany. The era of Chancellor Merkel’s 16-year reign in German politics has ended. The new government in Germany is a three-party coalition government and many of the policies of these three parties are contradictory. Against this backdrop, doubts are being raised about whether Germany will remain as active in the European Union as before. Analysts say France has signalled its intention to take over the reins of the federation with a top country like Italy and that the Quirinal Treaty is a step in that direction.