Beyond Temper Tantrums

Bill O’Reilly can call for all the boycotts of France he likes and to some degree he may even be right in doing so but the reality is that France is not our enemy…there I’ve said it.

I am not disputing certain claims that definitely paint France as adversarial but being such does not make them, “the enemy”. Let’s get some perspective here, al Qaeda is the enemy; Islamic fundamentalism is the enemy; Pan-Arabism is the enemy; the spread of Communism in whatever form it takes is the enemy; the government of Syria is our enemy; the government of Iran is our enemy; the Wahhabist are our enemies; France is looking for some form of international influence and a return to global prominence in the face of US reach and dominance, which is far from saying, “Death to America!” Let’s all take a deep cleansing breath and examine the Franco-US relationship in all of its complexities instead of the road-rage/fast food style of political analysis we’ve all grown so used to.

President Bush is in Europe attempting to mend fences over the Iraq war among other issues. The AP reports, “President Bush's dinner with French President Jacques Chirac in Brussels, Belgium, on Monday approaches with the expectation that bygones will be set aside, despite enduring points of disagreement… It is a progression, at least in tone, from when Condoleezza Rice, now secretary of state and formerly the president's national security adviser, voiced the wish to punish France, ignore Germany and forgive Russia for their resistance to the Iraq war. In those days, France was seen as the most annoying member of what wags called the "axis of weasels," and the hard feelings and bitter words were mutual.

What's changed? Most notably, the invasion of Iraq that France so vociferously opposed fades in time and the Iraqi elections shifted the ground upon which Washington and Paris staked their leading disagreement.

"American action in Iraq was imprudent, but it must not be allowed to end badly," said Jean-Claude Casanova, specialist in bilateral history, tracing a basis for France to cooperate with Washington now.”

I have used this space many times to remind people that despite all of the anti-American rhetoric spewed both at home and abroad, it is a fact that where the United States goes, so does the rest of the world. We are the 800lbs gorilla and the engine the drives the world. We run trade deficits with a large portion of the world and I believe we are the largest donator of aid despite having much less of the worlds population. We have enough nuclear missiles to blow up the entire world 200 times over (according to analysts). However, we are not alone in the world nor can we police it by ourselves…at least not without killing a whole lot of people.

So let’s talk about France, oui? France is attempting to assert itself as the dominant player in the European Union, which in turn is attempting to establish itself as the regional leader East of the Atlantic Ocean. France and its neighbors however have roots and interests in both Africa and Asia. It is that very same Africa and Asia that have proven fertile ground for a turf war between America, the EU (France), Russia and China. France has as much to lose as we do if the Middle East or Central Asia falls under complete control of the Islamic fundamentalists. There are roughly 3 million Muslims living in France alone so despite what you might hear on cable news, they are in fact invested in the war against terrorism. If they weren’t they’d be exposing themselves to ruin.

For example, “…on 14 December 1999, an Algerian named Ahmed Ressam was arrested on the U.S.-Canadian border with a trunk full of explosives intended for use in an attack on the Los Angeles International Airport. Ressam grew up in Algeria, resided in Canada and plotted attacks against the United States, but despite having few French connections, French authorities knew who Ressam was and what he intended. French anti-terrorism investigators had been tracking Ressam and his associates in Canada for over three years and had repeatedly warned Canadian authorities of Ressam?s intention to carry out terrorist attacks in North America. After his arrest, French investigators were able to provide the FBI with a complete dossier on Ressam and to aid U.S. authorities in identifying his associates, eventually sending an official to testify at his trial.” (Credit brookings.edu)

This is just one example of how the French and US assist one another in the greater struggle. The embassy of France reports, “…the two parties have pledged to mutually provide one another with the greatest possible assistance in any investigation or proceedings involving criminal offenses whose sanctions fall within in the scope, at the time such mutual assistance is requested, of the legal authorities of the requesting government.”

Another telling statement comes from the Committee on International Relations in the U.S. House of Representatives. “The evolution from the old to the new transatlantic system should also be put in the context of the declining importance of Europe in military and strategic terms for the US, reinforced by 9/11. It is, however, noteworthy that when America needs help for something – be it peacekeepers, financial support, intelligence about terrorist networks and the like – the continent where it finds its allies is Europe.”

Simply put, France and their neighbors are no longer in fear of the Soviets coming over the Berlin Wall to sprawl the Communist empire. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment-there is no “evil empire” on their doorstep anymore that requires them to do the bidding of the one force capable of protecting them. That game is done and we more or less won. If the Europeans don’t attempt to assert regional influence now then they might as well roll over and declare themselves part of the United States. I think their point is valid, the Cold War is over and so is their subservient role to the US. As the above statement indicates, they are our allies in all ways but that does not mean they are our slaves. It’s not the best situation in the world but that’s the way life is.

One of the issues that has historically complicated matters is their treatment of Israel. The story that got Bill O’Reilly all hot and bothered was that France would not designate Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. “French President Jacques Chirac has turned down a request from Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom to vote in favor of placing Hezbollah on the European Union's list of terrorist organizations, telling Shalom that the timing was not right for such a move.” One could read that and blame this strictly in anti-Semitism or even anti-Americanism in that we are ardent supporters of Israel. However, all is not how it seems. “According to Israeli sources, the French are well-aware of the terrorist element of the Hezbollah, but they are now focusing their efforts on the success of the upcoming Lebanese elections so they don't want to strain relations with the group, which is running as a political party in the upcoming vote.” Shades of gray folks, the world is more complicated than a segment on the O’Reilly Factor and kitschy bumper stickers. (Credit Haaretz.com)

The cold hard truth of the matter is that at the end of the day, we are together against the Islamic fundamentalists. It is possible however unlikely that the Muslims living in Europe will join with their brothers in the Middle East and Central Asia and attempt a revolution from within. If that happens France knows we will be there to help stop it. If it never happens and the jihad is only limited to attacks we’ve already seen such as in Madrid, then in all actuality, they loose nothing by occasionally putting their foot down and acting as an international counterweight to the US.

I believe we are better served by moving beyond these trivial temper tantrums and understand that the world is not so black as white as is painted on cable news. Competition in the international marketplace is not the worst problem facing the US and we should refrain from acting like it is.

"Why behave like a 6-year-old child?" Walter Russell Mead, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (2/20/05)