Neighbor has erected a 180cm high fence without final coordination

Uhm... I found that you have to maintain 2m 50cm to the property boundary. Doesn't that apply in NRW? This is supposed to prevent someone from putting a wall directly on the property boundary next to the neighbor...

Maybe that's why he chose 1.8m?

In NRW, plots. Fences up to 2m at the original ground level are exempt from approval without distances.

There are just types who "act" - and others who only "react" (or: "doers and victims") ;) Guess what kind your neighbor is...!

my compromise would also be 160. at 180 you feel like you’re in prison (or at least that’s how I imagine it)

Oh, it’s just one side. And your intended planting (what is a palisade tree?) will, if it’s a proper shrub or tree or hedge, also quickly reach 180. Then you won’t see anything anymore. Ultimately, he is allowed to put up a fence up to 2 meters… and there’s no talk of a privacy fence, except among forum members. Basically, it’s going well and cost-neutral for you. However, how the neighbor deals with others or compromises or different opinions, you should be prepared for that. It doesn’t have to mean that you have to have a strained relationship with him. He can still be considered a nice neighbor. And maybe he really sees it as a nonverbal agreement… many people have learned different communication. So, don’t focus on a conflict where no disadvantage is visible.

In NRW, fences up to 2m on the original ground level are exempt from approval without distances.

Wow, are there really no municipal regulations in NRW? Absolutely nothing? Here in Bavaria, there are indeed state regulations but also municipal regulations on top.