23 January: Konrad Adenauer and Charles de Gaulle sign the German-French Treaty of Friendship

War has prevailed between the Germans and the French time and again since the 17th century. By signing of the Élysée Treaty, a treaty of friendship between France and West Germany at the Élysée Palace in Paris, Federal Chancellor Adenauer and France’s President de Gaulle want to introduce a new era of peace between the two nations. The treaty envisages close cooperation in all important political and economic matters. Young people are to be brought together through exchange programs.