French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz have agreed to a €100bn fighter jet programme's future, setting a mid-April deadline for Airbus and Dassault to resolve their bitter dispute. The two leaders, meeting in Brussels, committed to establishing a mediation process to force the aerospace giants to collaborate on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS). Macron, a long-time advocate for the project launched in 2017, warned its collapse would send the wrong signal amid US disengagement threats and the Ukraine war.

Merz, facing domestic pressure and doubts about the jet's relevance, had grown increasingly frustrated. The core conflict pits Dassault, the Rafale maker, against Airbus, who accuses the French group of trying to relegate it to a passive role. Tensions escalated as both companies need to advance to the next construction phase, with Dassault CEO Trappier recently declaring FCAS 'dead' unless Airbus relented.

Airbus, however, has floated a 'two-fighter solution' if mandated by governments. The mediation aims to find common ground before the April deadline.