European Union – Meeting between Jean-Yves Le Drian and Frans Timmermans (Paris, 6 March 2018)

The meeting focused on two main issues:

• with respect to the rule of law in Poland, Jean-Yves Le Drian reaffirmed France’s support for the Commission’s efforts with regard to Polish justice reforms, which are giving rise to legitimate concerns in terms of their conformity with the principles of judicial independence, the separation of powers and legal certainty. The recent resumption of the high-level dialogue between the Commission and the new Polish government is a positive sign. France and its partners expect this dialogue to yield swift results;

• the European democratic process was discussed in follow up to the informal meeting of heads of state and government on February 23. The meeting provided an opportunity for Jean-Yves Le Drian to underscore the pan-European dimension of the citizen consultations proposed by President Macron; all member states have now pledged to participate in these consultations.