Mayence, 13/06/2000 (Agence Europe) - Following the Franco-German Summit in Mayence, Chancellor Schröder asserted that France and Germany where largely in agreement on the broad guidelines over positions to be taken in the main issues discussed at the Intergovernmental Conference on institutional reform of the EU. That is to say that "three Amsterdam leftovers" and the strengthened co-operations (which are not yet formally written down in the agenda). With regard to the weighting of votes in the Council - one of the details that still need to be resolved - President Chirac indicated that it was desirable" to take into account the "demographic element" and that this "would not be a problem between us." The European Council in Feira could be the opportunity for France and Germany to outline their "joint approach" before the other Heads of State and Government. Furthermore, Jacques Chirac (who saw in the speech by Joshka Fischer "a very good vision of Europe", while Prime Minister Lionel Jospin simply spoke of the opening of a "healthy debate") said he was in favour of the adoption, when the time comes, of a European "constitutional contract", announcing: "If it is a case of saying who does what in the European Union of tomorrow, who to true apply the principal of subsidiarity, what are the relations between Europe and the nations, then it would be useful to have a text of this nature."
Furthermore, in Mayence, Germany confirmed that it would buy 75 units of the troop transport aircraft Airbus A400M, and the Statement adopted during the Summit specifies that "France and Germany hope that the industries associated to the programme seek co-operation opportunities" with Russia and the Ukraine. The Statement also adds that France and Germany intends to establish "an independent European satellite observation system", to which France would "contribute with its optic satellite system" (the Helios II satellite), while Germany "will acquire an all weather radar satellite system" (the SAR-Loup system). The Statement notes that this "bilateral initiative would form the basis of a European observation system, open to other European partners."