12/2025: Europe’s moment
Franco-German action in the wake of an eroding global order
Photos: Maurice Weiss, Hannah Wilson
On 4 and 5 December 2025, the Pariser Platz Dialogue took place near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin under the theme “Europe’s moment – Franco-German action in the wake of an eroding global order.”
The Pariser Platz Dialogue series serves as a platform for exchange, bringing together voices from both sides of the Rhine and across Europe to discuss and develop ideas on how France and Germany can initiate and enhance political action at the European level.
The two-day programme featured focused discussion under the Chatham House rule, addressing key priorities for Europe’s future:
- European industries: Caught between a new China shock and the US tariff crunch
- Funding Europe’s Future: Priorities of the upcoming EU budget
- A question of power: Does the EU have what it takes to navigate hostile geopolitical waters?
- Seeking nuclear umbrellas and conventional deterrence: How can we guarantee Europe’s security?
- Too many flags, too little capacity? Consolidating Europe’s defence industry
- Digital Sovereignty and Democratic Resilience: Two sides of the same coin?
- Opening options: Weimar+, coalitions of the willing and the need for a European avant-garde
Public Event
Following the on-site event, an online public discussion on 10 December 2025 took the Pariser Platz Dialogue’s overarching topic further:
- DANIELA SCHWARZER, Executive Board Member of the Bertelsmann Stiftung
- SHAHIN VALLÉE, Senior Associate Fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations
- GEORGINA WRIGHT, Special Adviser to the President and Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States
- Moderation: THU NGUYEN, Acting Co-Director at the Jacques Delors Centre
Against the backdrop of an unprecedented convergence of threats the EU is facing, the panel will explore how the EU can position itself strategically across institutional, geopolitical, and economic dimensions to prepare for current and future shocks.
Watch the recording of the public panel here:
