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Franco-American rapprochement; towards a new transatlantic relationship? Wednesday, April 8 For many French people, the American “hyper-power” could pose a global threat, and, as such, they believe they must keep their distance. In this way, we create the false image of a France that is different, a France that alone holds the recipe for democracy and the defense of diversity and cultures against U.S. hegemony. Breaking with that systematic defiance, the first visits by president Sarkozy to the United States were criticized as signs of allegiance. Has France gone from independence to submission? Is it a temporary appeasement or a true rapprochement between old allies? Will the Atlantic alliance come apart under the pressure of a “continental drift” that will continue distancing the United States from the Old World? Or, on the contrary, is the relationship soundly based on shared values and interests? Despite their differences, France and the United States share not only the same ideals (democracy and human rights) and the same problems (those of an open society), but also the same enemies. Terrorism, nuclear proliferation, violence in the Middle East, and China and Russia’s excesses do not threaten only Americans, and the United States cannot face them alone. How is it possible to even imagine an effective fight against global warming without American cooperation? With the upcoming election of a new American president, isn’t this the time to reshape the European-American alliance and to create a new transatlantic relationship that is based on openness, balance, and clarity? Nicole Bacharan is a historian and political scientist specializing in American society and French-American relations. She is a researcher with the National Foundation for Political Science (Science-Po) and a National Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in California. |
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