Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images ‘Dear MEPs, we are in trouble’ Merkel and Hollande and the European Parliament have a lot to talk about.

STRASBOURG — Just days after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Helmut Kohl and François Mitterrand spoke at the European Parliament. The mood was jubilant as the German and French leaders celebrated the end of "three decades of division" and called for a strengthened "process of European unification."

Fast forward to this week and Angela Merkel and François Hollande will follow in their predecessors' footsteps, using a joint speech Wednesday to Parliament to mark the 25th anniversary of the historic German re-unification that followed the Wall's dismantling.

It's billed as a celebratory moment, but the mood will be downbeat at best.

Martin Schulz, the president of the Parliament, who arranged the visit, warned that the speeches will take place in a context of “historically difficult times” and “immense challenges.”

Merkel and Hollande are expected to speak for 15 to 20 minutes each and then answer questions from the leaders of the Parliament's political groups.

“They will share their views on the state of Europe today and lay out their vision,” said a Parliament spokesman.

In reality, the debate is likely to focus on the EU’s response to the migration crisis a month after member countries were at odds over a plan to relocate 120,000 refugees across Europe. The scheme was eventually adopted but several countries were dead-set against mandatory quotas.

The news is no less bleak elsewhere. Merkel and Hollande are likely to touch on the need for a more efficient economic and monetary union in the wake of the Greek crisis. They could be asked about a possible 'Brexit' from the EU.

The situation in Europe may be bleak but MEPs are eager to hear from two of the Continent's major players. According to a Parliament official, Schulz has been trying to get Merkel and Hollande to Strasbourg since January.

"Schulz thought that for the European Union to work well, we need the Franco-German engine to work well. He used the privileged relations he has with both of them to make the engine work,” the official said.

Gianni Pittella, leader of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, the same center-left political family as Schulz and Hollande, paid tribute to the Parliament president's plan to invite the leaders of the two countries “that have been at the center of European integration.”

However, he warned that a Europe centered on “two poles” should not be the norm.

Syed Kamall, the president of the European Conservatives and Reformists group, also questioned the Franco-German dominance in EU affairs.

“They want to be seen as the old engines of the EU,” Kamall said. “But with 28 members the feeling that some states matter more than others has become part of the problem.”

Manfred Weber, who leads the center-right European People’s Party, to which Merkel's Christian Democrats belong, said he expected the two leaders to show “leadership” and “vision” on migration and economic issues.

The presence of Merkel and Hollande highlights how the assembly has asserted itself in recent months. “It shows that they take our institution seriously,” said Philippe Lamberts, co-leader of the Green group.

Among the high-profile visitors to the Parliament in recent months were Jean-Claude Juncker, who delivered his State of the Union speech in September, and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who told the Parliament in July that he wanted to strike a "viable" agreement with the country's creditors.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has been invited to address MEPs, although no date has yet been set for that appearance.