‘We want to open a new chapter in German-French relations’: Germany’s Europe minister

We speak to Germany’s Minister of State for Europe, Gunther Krichbaum, on the day that NATO leaders convened for a crunch summit in The Hague that approved a higher defence spending target of 5 percent of GDP. Krichbaum argues that the current “irritations” in the transatlantic relationship make it even more important for Europe to define its own interests, especially in defence policy. A staunch Francophile and French speaker, Krichbaum argues that it is time for Germany and France to find a consensus and an atmosphere of trust. “This is now the new dimension of French-German relations,” he states.