GERMANY, FRANCE RENEW PACT AMID RISE OF POPULISM

AACHEN, GERMANY German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned Tuesday against rising nationalism in Europe and called for a revival of cross-border co-operation as she and her French counterpart signed a pact renewing their countries’ decades-long friendship.

The new accord was inked in the ancient western German city of Aachen exactly 56 years after the 1963 Elysee Treaty, which set the tone for the two countries’ close relationship following centuries of conflict that ended with the Second World War.

“Populism and nationalism are strengthening in all of our countries,” Merkel told French, German and European officials gathered in Aachen’s town hall.

Citing Britain’s departure from the European Union and the growing protectionist tendencies around the world, Merkel noted that international co-operation is going through a rocky time.

“Seventy-four years, a single human lifetime after the end of World War II, what seems self-evident is being called into question again,” she said. “That’s why, first of all, there needs to be a new commitment toward our responsibility within the European Union, a responsibility held by Germany and France.”

Her words were echoed by French President Emmanuel Macron, who noted that France and Germany no longer pose a threat to each other.

“(The threat) comes from outside Europe and from within our societies if we are not able to respond to the growing anger,” he said.

The Treaty of Aachen aims to boost cross-border co-operation along the Franco-German frontier.