Berlin - Chancellor Angela Merkel has given a warm welcome to French President Emmanuel Macron's speech on Europe but said Berlin still needed to study the proposals in detail.

"The chancellor welcomes the fact that the French president spoke with so much enthusiasm and so much passion about Europe," her spokesman Steffen Seibert said on Wednesday in Berlin.

Too early for a detailed response

Unveiling his vision for a makeover of the European Union in Paris on Tuesday, Macron called on Germany to join him in a "new partnership" to help implement his plans.

Seibert said, however, it was too early to provide a detailed response to the proposals, which include a call for a eurozone budget and joint troop contingents for military operations.

"It always depends on the concrete design (of the proposals)," said Seibert, adding that Macron had set out a large amount of material for what Berlin saw as the upcoming and necessary debate on Europe's future.

"This debate is going to regain momentum," said Seibert, noting that Merkel would "happily contribute."

One of the first opportunities is likely to be on Thursday evening at an EU digital summit in the Estonian capital, Seibert said.