Bormes-les-Mimosas (France) (AFP)

It floats like a back-to-school fragrance on Fort Brégançon where Emmanuel Macron receives Angela Merkel on Thursday to try to strengthen the agreement between the Franco-German couple on the many hot European and international issues.

Under the sun of the Côte d'Azur, the welcome promises to be relaxed for the German Chancellor, who will discover at 4:00 p.m. for the first time the summer residence of the French presidents, in Bormes-les-Mimosas (Var).

After Briton Theresa May in 2018 and Russian Vladimir Poutin last year, she is the third leader to be invited by Emmanuel Macron who, more than his predecessors, seems to appreciate this fort built on a rocky outcrop above the " Big blue ".

At the end of the summer, "the international agenda is particularly busy," said the Elysee, listing the subjects that should be addressed: the continuation of the Covid-19 epidemic, the crises in Mali, Belarus and in Lebanon, tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, Brexit, the next European deadlines ...

On all these issues, Berlin and Paris share a "high level of convergence", people say in the entourage of the president, welcoming the "renewed vigor" of the "Franco-German couple".

"Today, the Macron-Merkel bond has become very strong," said Clément Beaune, Secretary of State for European Affairs, in Le Parisien, insisting on "the need for a true alignment between the two countries".

This agreement was ostensibly displayed a month ago by Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron at the "historic" European summit in Brussels.

For five days, they fought together to get the 27 EU member countries to accept a 750 billion euro plan to help the EU overcome the economic crisis triggered by the coronavirus.

But this agreement has yet to be implemented, which requires its ratification by the European Parliament and by the parliaments of the 27 member states, if possible by the end of the year.

- European emergencies -

Strong cooperation between the 27 is also deemed necessary to deal with the continuation of the pandemic, which has prompted Angela Merkel to rule out any further relaxation of the health rules in force in Germany this week. Emmanuel Macron, for his part, mentioned, in an interview with Paris-Match published Thursday, the possibility of a "targeted re-containment that could be established if the situation required it".

Paris and Berlin also want, according to the Elysee, that the Europeans agree, "on a common basis", on the measures taken at the borders in order to avoid the repetition of the hiccups caused by unilateral decisions at the beginning of the crisis , in March.

Other hot topics include persistent tensions with Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean, an issue on which France is more offensive than Germany against Ankara.

In the interview with Paris-Match, Emmanuel Macron considers that his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan leads "an expansionist policy which mixes nationalism and Islamism, which is not compatible with European interests" and is "a factor of destabilization".

Germany, for its part, is trying to mediate between Greece and Turkey, for the moment at a standstill.

On this file, "there is no substantive contradiction" between Paris and Berlin, assures the Elysee.

The discussion should also focus on the major European issues that Germany hopes to see progress during its EU presidency which ends in December. In particular on the climate, with commitments to be made to make Europe the first CO2 neutral continent by 2050.

Angela Merkel also received Thursday morning the figure of the climate movement Greta Thunberg, who once again denounced the "political inaction" of states in the face of climate change.

The two leaders will also take stock of the difficult Brexit negotiations, which resumed Tuesday without having made any real progress in recent months. "We have to find an agreement by October at the latest," recalled a Commission spokesperson.

After this visit, Emmanuel Macron will end his "calm and studious" vacation in Brégançon before joining the Elysee Palace, where he will chair the Council of Ministers back to school on Tuesday. To prepare it, he will meet on Friday at 12 noon in Brégançon with Prime Minister Jean Castex.

© 2020 AFP