France and Germany launched celebrations marking their 40-year special relationship today with European unity on their minds and the Iraq crisis overshadowing their talks.
President Jacques Chirac received Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder at the Elysee Palace for a first round of talks before the two were due to chair a pioneering joint session of both countries' cabinets and issue a statement on future cooperation.
The celebrations, including a joint parliamentary session this afternoon in Versailles Palace outside Paris and a French-German youth meeting in Berlin tomorrow, marked the 40th anniversary of the 1963 treaty that reconciled the former enemies and made them the key partners in the European Union.
The day's events, carefully choreographed to accommodate over 1,000 parliamentarians, put heavy emphasis on the role France and Germany play as pioneers of European integration.
In a joint declaration due after the cabinet session, the two countries were to announce they would try to harmonise their laws and have ministers join in cabinet meetings in each others' countries when issues of common interest were discussed.
They were due to say they would try to adopt common positions in foreign affairs, including at the Security Council, but further-reaching ideas initially mooted such as sharing France's permanent seat have been dropped.
All 577 French and 603 German deputies have been invited to the joint parliamentary session, which will be addressed by Mr Chirac and Mr Schroeder.