German troops are to be posted in France for the first time in 60 years, in an effort to uphold military cooperation between the ex-foes.
Paris has agreed in principle to a proposal made by Germany earlier this year to allow a German battalion to be stationed in eastern France, French Defense Ministry spokesman General Christian Baptiste said on Tuesday.
Some 500 soldiers will be part of the Franco-German brigade to be stationed side-by-side in southwest Germany.
It is likely that the soldiers will be based in Alsace-Lorraine -- a region occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II.
The precise location of the future base has yet to be determined.
"Discussions are continuing on choosing a base for the battalion," Baptiste told AFP.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are expected to announce further details of the plan at a security conference scheduled to be held in Munich on Saturday.
Merkel offered to send the brigade after Paris announced plans to pull some of its troops out of Germany as part of wide-ranging defense cuts, the Der Spiegel newspaper has reported.
Merkel was disappointed with the French decision, saying it would be a "shame" to dismantle the battalion, a key symbol of Franco-German unity and a major unit in Europe's multinational defense initiative, known as Eurocorps.