The Netherlands and Germany will hold a joint summit next week to discuss how to dovetail their plans to combat climate change, the Financieele Dagblad said on Friday.

Prime minister Mark Rutte and German chancellor Angela Merkel will meet in The Hague on Thursday with other government ministers to talk about working more closely together, the paper said.

The meeting is a preparatory one, and further, more detailed, talks will take place in October. The agenda for next week includes the introduction of a carbon tax on industry and plans to store carbon dioxide underground.

Jan Braun of The Hague’s Centre for Strategic Studies told the paper that if the Netherlands and Germany can take the same approach they will be able to act as a role model for other EU countries. In addition, their alliance will boost the likelihood of a Europe-wide carbon tax being introduced, he said.