Europe: The Necessary Guest

When the Franco-German treaty of perpetual friendship was signed 21 years ago, it seemed only fitting that it stipulate biennial, home-and-home visits for the two heads of state. As it has turned out, the treaty has been marked by almost perpetual discord since its inception, and French and German views on everything from NATO and European unity to attitudes toward the Soviet Union and the U.S. involvement in Viet Nam have increasingly diverged. Last week German Chancellor Ludwig Erhard received French President Charles de Gaulle in Bonn as the treaty prescribes—but De Gaulle clearly went only to do his...