Airbus restructuring should be "distributed harmoniously" in France,Germany: Chirac

French President Jacques Chirac expressed his support for the restructuring of Airbus on Thursday, during a meeting with visiting German counterpart Angela Merkel.

In a statement, Chirac said the restructuring of the European plane manufacturer should be "distributed harmoniously" between plants at Hamburg in Germany and Toulouse in France.

Merkel, who arrived at the French presidential palace on Thursday morning, spoke with Chirac ahead of a special French-German ministers conference during which the Airbus issue was set to be high up the agenda.

The conference was being staged to discuss a number of concerns, including European Union expansion, the nuclear programs of Tehran and Pyongyang, as well as European energy security.

However, the crisis at Airbus and EADS, the parent aerospace group behind Airbus was likely to dominate the talks, a government official said.

The troubled plane maker was currently experiencing a management and production crisis, caused by delays in the completion of its A380 super jumbo program. The situation prompted the resignation of its chief executive, Christian Streiff.

Airbus now has to face a two-year delay in deliveries, which means a 4.8-billion-euro (6 billion U.S. dollars) future profit shortfall.

French Junior Industry Minister Francois Loos said on Wednesday that no "brutal change" would be made in the proportional distribution between France and Germany in the production of Airbus airliners.

However, there has been speculation that under the new chief executive, Louis Gallois, more work could be concentrated on the French side.

Source: Xinhua