This looks like yet more meddling, but it could at least smooth the path of Gaz DE France's much-delayed privatisation.

At GM's headquarters in Detroit, the main worry was that much of Opel's intellectual property would leak to Gaz, a Russian carmaker which was a partner in the Magna consortium.

In addition, the partnership with GAZ suggests that Opel might shift its focus east from its current core markets in Europe.