 | A Certain Idea of France: French Security Policy and Gaullist Legacy Subjects: Gaulle Charles de 1890–1970 -- Influence; Gaulle Charles de 1890–1970 -- Military leadership; France -- Foreign relations -- 1945–; France -- Military policy; France -- Relations -- Europe; Europe -- Relations -- France; Cold War; As France begins to confront the new challenges of the post-Cold War era, the time has come to examine how French security policy has evolved since Charles de Gaulle set it on an independent course in the 1960s. Philip Gordon shows that the Gaullist model, contrary to widely held beliefs, has lived on--but that its inherent inconsistencies have grown more acute with increasing European unification, the diminishing American military role in Europe, and related strains on French military budgets. The question today is whether the Gaullist legacy will enable a strong and confident France to play a full role in Europe's new security arrangements or whether France, because of its will to independence, is destined to play an isolated, national role. Philip H. Gordon is currently a Visiting Scholar at the German Society for Foreign Affairs in Bonn, Germany. He is a consultant for the RAND corporation and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. |
