Joint Declaration of the Foreign Ministers of the Weimar Triangle Johann…

"Europe stands at a historical turning point in its history. Its peoples and states have embarked on a path toward new forms of coexistence. We are aware that Poland, Germany, and France bear a decisive responsibility for the success of sustainable structures of European neighbourhood."

(Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Roland Dumas, Krzysztof Skubiszewski, Weimar, 29th August 1991 on the occasion of the first meeting of the Weimar Triangle)

As the Foreign Ministers of the Weimar Triangle, we are gathered today in Weimar to celebrate the spirit that was born 35 years ago. Over three and a half decades, Germany, France, and Poland have worked for European innovation, integration, prosperity and progress. Jointly we have provided important impulses for a united, strong, and secure Europe. The European Union remains an indispensable framework for the pursuit of freedom, prosperity and security. In the Weimar Triangle we will work together, alongside all EU member states, to make our Union more sovereign, resilient and capable of taking action. As NATO Allies, we are committed to building a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO that ensures peace, security and stability in the Euro-Atlantic area.
We view the Weimar Triangle as an engine of integration that helps to synchronise different perspectives within the European Union and point to a common, forward-looking direction. By inviting partner countries and key regional stakeholders to join our consultations, we aim to enhance the Triangle's function as a broader platform to integrate diverse perspectives more efficiently. Today, ministers from all departments of our governments meet regularly, underlining the vital importance of our cooperation. Our civil societies and our scientific and cultural institutions cooperate closely for the benefit of Europe, e.g. as joint guests of honour at the Leipzig Book Fair in 2027.

Given current geopolitical developments, the Weimar Triangle emphasises the need to reform the internal set-up of EU external action, to allow for stronger, swifter and more coordinated EU responses. This should comprise the role and the institutional set-up of the relevant EU institutions and bodies, including the High Representative/Vice-President, the European External Action Service, the General Secretariat of the Council and the Commission. Work shall be initiated as soon as possible to reinforce the role and authority of the HR/VP in coordinating the Union's external action. We also aim to improve EU decision-making by best utilising all options provided within the Treaties.

Furthermore, to strengthen cohesion in Europe and demonstrate the Union's capacity to act decisively, we set the following priorities:

I. Assuming greater responsibility for our defence

Faced with mounting security challenges, our three nations play a key role in advancing Europe's security. We are united in our determination to strengthen the European pillar of NATO, which remains the foundation for the security and defence of Europe. Our commitment to our Alliance is ironclad. We are assuming greater responsibility for our defence, working together with other Allies and reaffirming the fundamental importance of the transatlantic bond in all its dimensions. We are committed to further strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence posture. Recognising the immediate threats on NATO and the EU's eastern flank, we are committed to ensuring the defence of all NATO and EU land, air and maritime borders.

Europe must become more sovereign, more responsible for its own defence and better equipped to act and deal autonomously and in a coordinated way with immediate and future challenges and threats, with a 360° approach. We also support the development of a more robust and competitive European defence technological and industrial base, including through EU programmes like SAFE and EDIP and in the next MFF.

Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has profoundly changed the security of our continent.

In light of the long-term threat posed by Russia, we as the Weimar Triangle will continue to address Russia's broad array of activities, such as hybrid activities, provocations, acts of espionage or sabotage or information manipulation. The recent drone incident at Leipzig/Halle Airport starkly underlines the need to take further action in light of the evolving hybrid threat we currently face. The Weimar Triangle will continue to impose costs on such activities, both at the national and European levels, such as through the adoption on 13 July of a coordinated European response to the cyber-attacks carried out by Russia against the EU and its member states' interests, in which the Weimar Triangle played a major role. We will continue to develop robust countermeasures to protect and safeguard our citizens, democratic institutions and critical systems against hybrid interference.

II. Achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine

The Weimar Triangle plays an important role in organizing and consolidating our continued support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. We are determined to bring about a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine, in accordance with international law. We stand ready to contribute to robust and credible security guarantees for Ukraine, including through the Coalition of the Willing and to strengthen Ukraine's ability to deter and defend itself effectively. We will continue to support Ukraine as long as it takes, with the provision of military support, through the financing and donating of priority equipment, industry procurement, research and development cooperation, co-productions, the ramping up of the European defence industry to ensure swift and long-lasting deliveries, as well as funding for Ukrainian production. At the same time, we will continue to reinforce the pressure on Russia's war economy through the adoption of targeted and impactful sanctions. We will keep targeting Russian energy revenues and the shadow fleet, the Russian financial sector as well as the Russian military-industrial complex.

III. Developing a new European business model

Amidst geopolitical tensions and a fragmented global economy, Europe's only path to prosperity is to bolster its competitiveness and preserve its economic and technological sovereignty. The "One Europe, One Market" Roadmap sets out our way towards enhancing the EU's long-term competitiveness through strengthening the foundations of the Single Market and reducing unnecessary regulatory burdens. We welcome the recent European Technological Sovereignty Package. We will increase the EU's economic resilience and defend our common rules for fair competition in the digital economy while ensuring a level playing field for European industry by addressing foreign subsidies and market distortions through the appropriate application of existing instruments, and globally, by leading efforts to reform and revitalize the multilateral trading system, advocate for reciprocal market access, and resolve structural imbalances through constructive cooperation. In parallel, we support the European Commission in swiftly strengthening the EU's trade defence toolbox and economic security, including through new instruments to reduce strategic and supply chain vulnerabilities. Close coordination in the Weimar Triangle addresses these challenges.

In parallel, we will make full use of and foster our global partnerships through the conclusion of further ambitious and mutually beneficial trade agreements, to secure new exports markets for EU companies and help diversify value chains. We underline our commitment to fair and rules-based trade. We emphasise the importance of stable and balanced EU-US trade relations, which are beneficial for companies and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic as well as our mutual commitment to uphold the EU-US Turnberry Agreement. We reaffirm the significance of our relations with China and the need to build a more balanced economic relationship with China, based on fair competitive conditions as its non-market policies paired with an undervalued currency threaten to erode our industrial base and turn dependencies into strategic vulnerabilities. We therefore welcome the Commissions' work on improving and further developing the EU's geoeconomic toolbox.

In order to foster innovation as a key driver of European prosperity, we will promote European research innovation through the Weimar Excellence Initiative, which strengthens trilateral scientific cooperation within the framework of the European University Alliances. Our new growth model includes an ambitious energy and climate policy, which guarantees secure, diversified and affordable energy and a just transition, fully implements international climate agreements, and augments European resilience against extreme weather events, climate change and environmental degradation.

IV. Fostering stability in our European neighbourhood

The Weimar Triangle helps to advance freedom, stability, and prosperity in our European neighbourhood. The security and stability of our eastern and southern neighbours, including their continued efforts towards closer integration with the European Union, are inextricably linked to our own security. We aim to vigorously advance the opening of negotiation clusters and the merit-based enlargement process with Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, as well as a tailor-made approach to offer immediate and tangible progress to all candidate countries, including the countries of the Western Balkans, in accordance with their respective reform progress. On the way to full membership, gradual steps can inject renewed momentum into candidates' integration into the European Union while ensuring the integrity and functioning of the EU.

The situation in the Middle East remains fragile and continues to be of great concern to us. In the Gulf, we reiterate the importance of reaching an agreement addressing the urgent re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz with unconditional and unrestricted freedom of navigation and ensuring that Iran will have no nuclear weapon and will stop their hostile activities in the region. We reaffirm our commitment to a negotiated two-state solution. We reiterate the urgent need for the full implementation of UNSCR 2803 for Gaza. In this regard, we urgently call on Hamas to finally hand over their weapons and stop their hostilities towards Israel. We reiterate our strong opposition to all illegal settlements and call on the Israeli government to cease all settlement activities. In Lebanon, we stand ready to support the implementation of the framework agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel in Washington, which calls for the disarmament of Hezbollah to enable the IDF to progressively redeploy out of Lebanese territory..

V. Protecting European values and our democratic discourse

In a time of increasing polarisation and hybrid threats, we must strengthen social cohesion in Europe and act together against foreign interference and information manipulation as well as attempts to erode European democratic standards. In the Weimar Triangle, we jointly monitor information threats and coordinate our responses, particularly when our democratic standards are targeted. We stand in solidarity in denouncing threats stemming from foreign actors, also by supporting each other's attack attributions. We must also ensure our reactive and efficient mutual alerting system continues to deliver strong results.

By fully implementing the Digital Services Act, our societies are better protected from foreign interference. The Weimar Triangle must be a driving force to bolster and fully implement the DSA, accelerating the regulation of platforms. Through their reliable and independent reporting, Deutsche Welle, France Médias Monde and International Media Centre (Ośrodek Mediów dla Zagranicy TVP) work together to reach audiences beyond our borders and strengthen societies' resilience to disinformation. The Weimar Triangle will support the financing by the EU of this informational shield on a long-term basis.

Working together in the EU, NATO and within other multilateral formats, the Weimar Triangle countries actively defend rules-based international order, our European values and democracies. As countries among the most frequently targeted by hostile actions, we share a common threat assessment and focus on building democratic resilience and promoting European principles.