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ID:
141732
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| Summary/Abstract |
This article investigates the Franco-British rapprochement in security and defence cooperation under Nicolas Sarkozy, Gordon Brown and David Cameron from 2008 to 2012. While in the past British Atlanticism and the French Europeanist tradition had stood in the way of close bilateral cooperation, the conclusion of several treaties of defence cooperation in this period delivered closer ties. By adopting an interpretivist perspective on events, this article argues that the rapprochement can be explained with reference principally to changes in the French tradition, which took it closer to the British Atlanticist tradition. Drawing on parliamentary and executive statements, the article traces the influence of, and changes in, the balance between Europeanism and Atlanticism in the defence policy traditions in the two countries. The article argues that the dilemmas that compelled a revision of the traditions particularly in France arose from a series of new beliefs at elite level about sovereignty over defence policy, national role conceptions and the recognition of dire budgetary constraints. In this context, Franco-British rapprochement served both countries’ national interests.
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| 2 |
ID:
119306
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| 3 |
ID:
157529
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| Summary/Abstract |
France is one of the most prominent European military powers and a strong proponent of an independent European military capability. Yet, France’s actions since 2009 suggest that it may be prioritizing the transatlantic relationship over the development of the European Union’s Common Security and Defence Policy. Does this signal a fundamental Atlanticist shift in the way that France envisions its future defence and security, or does it simply signal a temporary re-evaluation of French Europeanist security ambitions? Our analysis attempts to answer whether there is presently an Atlanticist shift evident in French foreign policy, and whether any such shift is rooted in a desire to preserve French influence through international institutions such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. This paper combines elite interviews with content analysis of French media comparing the current time with the mid-1990s to determine whether there is a shift in how defence and security issues are discussed and, if so, whether that signals a fundamental change. We find that, while there is a shift, it does not necessarily indicate a more Atlanticist posture, but suggests rather a pragmatic move to further French security goals through the most effective institutional mechanisms available.
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