The previous day in Dresden, Emmanuel Macron had called for the EU budget to be doubled, but this was no longer mentioned in the joint declaration at the Franco-German Ministerial Council on Tuesday at Schloss Meseberg. In the seven-page paper, Berlin and Paris merely refer to the high level of investment required in the coming years. However, the declaration remains vague on the question of financing. There is no mention of a budget increase in the declaration – the German government is putting the brakes on.