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Issue Brief

Nov 18, 2010

Missile Defense in NATO: A French Perspective

By Bruno Gruselle

Bruno Gruselle, Senior Fellow at the Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique in Paris, published a Transatlantic Missile Defense issue brief titled “Missile Defense in NATO: A French Perspective.” This issue brief explores the evolution of France’s stance towards a NATO missile defense collective. Download the PDF

France NATO

New Atlanticist

Nov 17, 2009

French Ship Sale to Russia Must Be Blown Off Course

By David Smith

The French Navy ship Mistral tied up at a downtown Saint Petersburg pier November 23. With the golden dome of St. Isaac’s Cathedral shimmering in the background, the amphibious assault ship made a perfect sales promotion picture, which was precisely its mission.  Some in Paris—led by the Elysée Palace—want to sell Mistral class ships to […]

France Russia

New Atlanticist

Sep 10, 2009

Does France Deserve NATO Command Role?

By James Joyner

Nile Gardiner, a former researcher for Margaret Thatcher who heads up a center named in her honor at Heritage Foundation, writes in the Telegraph that “The French do not deserve a command role in NATO.”  He calls the news that French general Stéphane Abrial will be head Allied Command Transformation “a further weakening of the […]

France NATO

New Atlanticist

Jul 20, 2009

The French & Iranian Revolutions

By Andrew Kessinger

We have recently celebrated the anniversaries of the American and French Revolutions, both violent civil uprisings that changed the course of their nation’s history.  A similar storm seems to be brewing – this time in Iran.

France Iran

New Atlanticist

Jun 29, 2009

Center of the French Speaking World Shifts to Africa

By Douglas Muir

If you’re a human being who speaks French, you’re more likely to be African than European. La Francophonie’s demographic center of gravity is now somewhere around Bamako, Mali. If you’re a human being who is literate in French — say, at a high school graduate level — you’re probably European. But not for much longer.

France Sahel

New Atlanticist

Jun 23, 2009

The King Returns to Versailles

By Jeffrey Lightfoot

Yesterday, the King of France returned to Versailles. No, readers of the New Atlanticist did not miss out on the news of a second Bourbon restoration, but President Nicolas Sarkozy’s historic address to French legislators at the former seat of royal power sent a not-so-subtle message about who is in charge in Paris.

France

New Atlanticist

Feb 5, 2009

France Wants Key NATO Posts for Increased Presence

By James Joyner

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is offering a very meager increase in French participation in NATO in exchange for command of two prestigious posts.  

France NATO

New Atlanticist

Jan 29, 2009

French Strike For Economic Stimulus

By James Joyner

As governments on both sides of the Atlantic scramble to cope with a global financial crisis most observers are calling the greatest since the Great Depression, the French citizenry seems to be losing patience. Hundreds of thousands of angry and fearful French workers mounted nationwide strikes and protests Thursday to demand President Nicolas Sarkozy do […]

France

New Atlanticist

Dec 17, 2008

Sarkozy Announces French Diversity Policy

By James Joyner

The president of France today announced a plan to get more ethnic minorities into more prominent positions. President Nicolas Sarkozy, impatient with what he said was the slow pace of promoting diversity in France, announced measures Wednesday to put more ethnic minorities on TV screens, in political parties and in elite schools.

France

New Atlanticist

Nov 7, 2008

Obama’s Election: The View from Europe

By Peter Cassata

The European public and its leaders have embraced Barack Obama’s victory while, in most cases, expressing some reservations.

European Union France

Experts