‘If there’s any news, I’ll call you … and I’ll reverse the charges.’ On 5 February 1975, as relations between French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing (on the right) and Federal Chancellor Helmut Schmidt (on the left) grow closer, French cartoonist Jacques Faizant paints an ironic picture of the disastrous economic situation in France. President Giscard is shown dressed as a beggar who cannot even afford to pay for a phone call to his German partner. The contrast is striking between a prosperous West Germany that seems well placed to withstand the international crisis, and a France weakened by galloping inflation and a balance of payments deficit that is mired in deep recession.