“‘Franco-German relations are excellent.” — French President Jacques Chirac.’ On 31 January 2001, German cartoonist Heiko Sakurai illustrates the proverbial arm wrestle between German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (on the left) and French President Jacques Chirac (on the right) over European issues. On 31 January the two leaders meet in Strasbourg at Chirac’s request in a bid to revive Franco-German relations, which have been strained since the long and difficult negotiations on the reform of the European institutions at the Nice European Council.