“Without the Élysée Treaty, such a study offer would have been unthinkable. The bond between the two countries has deepened, but this was not a matter of course”, says Corinne Pereira da Silva, the French Consul General in Munich, in her welcoming address. The current war in Ukraine showed clearly, she continued, how important values such as unity and cohesion were. In his capacity as head of the French and German degree program, KU Vice President for International Affairs and Profile Development Prof. Dr. Klaus Stüwe emphasized that while the Franco-German friendship was based on a political decision taken with the signing of the treaty by Adenauer and de Gaulle, it would still have remained abstract without personal exchange: “When the people of both countries come together in friendship in various ways, they often achieve more than big politics.” The partnership between Eichstätt and the city of Montbrison, which has existed for several years, also understands itself in this way. Francoise Wimmer-Fraimont, the initiator and chairperson of the partnership association that co-hosted the event, took a look back on the genesis and development of said partnership. She is convinced: “The Élysee Treaty was not signed in vain!” The Eichstätt mayor praised the “exchange from the heart of society” and thanked all those involved for their commitment. With regard to the relationship between France and Germany, he referred to de Gaulle once quoting the writer Carl Zuckmayer: “Yesterday it was our duty to be enemies, today it is our right to be brothers.”
Intercultural exchange in practice: 20 years of the German and French degree program in Political Science at the KU
![[Translate to Englisch:] Der Deutsch-Französische Studiengang Politikwissenschaft ehrte bei der Feier seine Absolventinnen und Absolventen, die nach erfolgreichem Abschluss nun entweder in den Masterstudiengang wechseln oder nach diesem in den Beruf einsteigen. Die Alumni des Studiengangs haben seit jeher exzellente Aussichten auf Karrieren in Politik, Wirtschaft und Kultur.](/fileadmin/_processed_/c/2/csm_Absolventinnen_und_Absolventen_a2aa8c7c7b.jpg)
With this in mind, Professor Stüwe characterized the graduates of the program as "Franco-German ambassadors" – whether they are actually involved in diplomacy or politics, work in culture and media, or have found a profession in management and business. In any case, they need not worry about their professional future, as the careers of our graduates show. Another factor is, as mentioned by Theresa Seitz, chairperson of the alumni association, that the program brings together "particularly committed young people". They are enthusiastic about the intercultural perspective and about studying in two different higher education systems. Each year, ten students each from Germany and France are provided with the opportunity to start studying in the DFS program. They complete part of their studies in their home country and the other part in the partner country. Graduates of the program even receive fourfold certificates: a Bachelor's or Master's degree certificate issued by the KU Eichstätt-Ingolstadt and, in parallel, Diploma and Master's degrees issued by IEP Rennes. The program is also integrated into the Franco-German University.
This constellation also entails administrative challenges, which KU program coordinator Dr. Christina Rüther and her French colleague Claudia Domjahn at the IEP confidently help students and lecturers navigate through. Prof. Dr. Stüwe and the students thanked both of them for their great commitment, as well as the founder of the program, Prof. Dr. Klaus Schubert, who had initiated the program together with his French colleague Prof. Ulrike Huet. The Deputy Director of the IEP, Marta Iglesias Casal is "proud and happy to have accompanied the students for the past 20 years.” She emphasized that although the challenges were initially huge, the goals were still exceeded. She continued to say that the program was the basis for a true intercultural exchange between two countries and two academic institutions.
At the event, Consul General Pereira da Silva, former Brigadier General and second chairperson of the "Friends of Montbrison" Ulrich Heider, former university attaché and co-producer of the podcast "FrankoViel", Landry Charrier, and KU graduate Sébastian Vannier, journalist of the newspaper "Ouest France", discussed the current state of Franco-German relations. In view of the Franco-German Ministerial Council, which was scheduled for the day after the event, moderator Dr. Christian Rüther asked the panel to characterize Franco-German relations, which have recently been described as increasingly strained in public debates – for example as regards the issue of capping gas prices in the EU. For Consul General Pereira da Silva, it is clear that the main benefit of the relationship between the two countries remains the ability to seek and find compromises: "That has always been the case!" Although the highest political levels in both countries have recently been busy with domestic issues and elections, the hustle and bustle at working level has been unbroken. Sébastian Vannier expressed the opinion that it was now "time to become more specific again in the common political direction". Also with regard to the war in Ukraine, Landry Charrier pleaded for France and Germany to resume a political leadership role.
Seen through the eye of a journalist, Vannier described that in France, there was a great deal of interest in the people and society of Germany. Germany, for example, is regarded by its French neighbors as a pioneer in environmental protection, and they are always looking to it for inspiration. "Vice versa, there is a great need for information on France in Germany. Our countries tend to talk past each other from time to time," explained Landry Charrier – also illustrating the background behind his German-language podcast on current developments in France. The fact that clouds are currently casting shadows on the Franco-German relationship is a sign that the two countries depend on each other and are interested in each other. Ulrich Heider appealed to involve young people more comprehensively, as they currently took Europe for granted. Based on his own biography, the former professional soldier traced the development of the relationship between the two states: While his grandfather was still fighting in Verdun, he himself had worked, amongst others, as deputy air force attaché at the German embassy in Paris: "I perceive the military cooperation – for example, in the form of the Franco-German brigade – as very positive, considering the history that connects the two countries."
More information on the German and French degree program in Political Science is available online in German at www.ku.de/dfs.