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Paris (AFP) – France and the Netherlands will work together to improve the performance of Air France-KLM, the French finance minister said on Friday, after talks with his Dutch counterpart to ease tensions over the airline alliance.  

Minister Bruno Le Maire’s announcement came after the Netherlands increased its stake in the airline in a bid to gain more oversight, triggering angry responses from a French government caught off guard by the stealth Dutch share purchase.

“We have explained ourselves to each other,” Le Maire told reporters after meeting with Dutch Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra in Paris.

“We wanted to look to the future with the goal of making Air France-KLM the most successful airline in the world,” he said. 

The two governments will put in place a working group which will deliver its conclusions by June on how to improve the alliance, a joint statement said, adding that both countries support Air France-KLM chief Ben Smith.

“The final outcome must be a fair and balanced one for all sides,” the statement from both ministers said.

The Netherlands this week announced a purchase of 14 percent of the airline, nearly matching the 14.3 percent held by France, sparking tensions over control and French warnings of instability in its management.

The working group will be jointly run by Martin Vial, head of France’s state holdings agency APE, and his Dutch counterpart Christiaan Rebergen, the statement said.

“We want to build a better company and make sure that the interests of both countries are taken in account,” the Dutch finance minister said.

The move by the Netherlands was prompted by doubts over the alliance’s strategy and worries Dutch interests were being neglected. 

The Netherlands is concerned longer term that many KLM flights may be transferred to Paris, which would make Amsterdam’s Schiphol lose its hub role.

French officials this week blasted the stake purchase move as “unfriendly” and French President Emmanuel Macron called on the Netherlands to clarify its intentions with the Air France-KLM alliance.

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