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The French connection
- Thread starter BLUEJACKET
- Start date
BLUEJACKET
Banned Idiot
I wouldn't be too sure about that. NATO is becoming more as a cultural organisation, and Europe is building its own force independent of NATO.France is part of NATO, so until that changes I don't see how or why they would possibly back China against the United States. The best case scenario for China would be French neutrality.
The EU has longed for a common European military capacity that would allow it to formulate and pursue a defense policy separate from that of NATO, which is dominated by the US.
Many European officials believe an autonomous European military capacity is necessary for the union to have a meaningful foreign policy and give it a stronger voice in world affairs. Otherwise, they argue, Europe's individual states are too weak to play a role independent of the US.
The US has opposed such a policy as an unnecessary duplication of NATO, which already pools European military resources under a single command and plans to build a new headquarters complex in Brussels in the next few years.
The controversy over the Iraq war convinced many Europeans -- French people and Germans, in particular -- of the need for a separate capacity and separate facilities that would allow Europe to pursue its own agenda without the approval of Washington.
D
Deleted member 675
Guest
France is being friendly to both China & Japan-a close ally of the US. In case of a conflict between those 2 + Taiwan will France stay neutral or share intel with the PLA?
The problem is that one reason the French have been so "nice" to China, in regards to going further than most European nations, is that President Chirac really has a problem with the Americans - he somehow thought he could make a counter-weight to American power with Chinese help. Yet he's not even going to be a candidate for next year's Presidential elections at this rate. Both Nicholas Sarkozy and Ségolène Royale want better ties with Washington.
So in regards to your answer, at best France will stay neutral. At worst (because Taiwan isn't going to attack China first) it would join other European countries to place embargoes on trade with China. I doubt even Chirac would actively help China fight a war against Taiwan.
BLUEJACKET
Banned Idiot
The Germans and the Russians are also eager to cultivate good relations with China to establish and maintain "multipolar world".The problem is that one reason the French have been so "nice" to China, in regards to going further than most European nations, is that President Chirac really has a problem with the Americans - he somehow thought he could make a counter-weight to American power with Chinese help.
Chirac eyes strategic partnerships with China
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
October 24th, 2006, 04:33
PARIS: French President Jacques Chirac, who is due to visit Beijing this week, said Monday he hoped to strike strategic partnerships with China in areas such as nuclear energy and rail transport. ..
"The partnership with China from now on is at the heart of France's foreign strategy because everyone knows that it's China that will play a large part in the future of the world," Chirac said. ..
He said the partnership between China and Europe should flourish because "there are no rivalries of power between us, only common interests
French President Jacques Chirac, meanwhile, said the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq destabilized the entire Middle East and caused terrorism to spread, adding that the problems in Iraq justified France's strong opposition to the war.
"As France foresaw and feared, the war in Iraq caused upheavals whose effects have not yet finished unraveling," Chirac said in a speech to French ambassadors.
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