One of the most remarkable aspects of contemporary international affairs has been the sharp deterioration of relations between the United States and the European Union, particularly the leaders of this grouping: Germany and France. This culminated in their sharp disagreement over the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 but this epochal development was preceded by rancorous rifts over matters as diverse as aerospace (Boeing vs. Airbus), genetically modified organisms (U.S. in favor, EU hesitant), cinema (EU resistance to exports from Hollywood), software (a record EU fine imposed on Microsoft in a far-reaching antitrust lawsuit), steel (U.S. imposed tariffs) and of course the challenge by the common European currency, the euro, to the rapidly eroding hegemony of the dollar.

A motor driving the EU over the years has been France, which over the years has not accepted wholly why its brand of imperialism should be subordinate to that of the U.S. This too is nothing new. Just as the U.S. preens about the alleged 'universality' of its ideals, France has adopted a similar posture, touting the 'universality' of the ideals emerging from the 1789 Revolution. Yet, much of this France-US conflict emerged in the aftermath of the joint British-French assault on Nasser’s Egypt in 1956, an ignominious failure not least since the U.S. decided not to go along. London and Paris drew opposite conclusions from this fiasco: the former decided that it no longer could afford to be distant from U.S. imperialism and, thus, has evolved into Washington’s poodle, a sycophancy exemplified by Prime Minister Tony Blair’s shameful acquiescence to the invasion of Iraq despite massive opposition at home. However, France—in a tendency that escalated during the regime of Charles De Gaulle, when Paris sensed that the U.S. was not totally supportive of their war against Algeria—decided that it had to develop an 'independent' foreign policy, with an independent nuclear arsenal so as to better buck the hegemony of U.S. imperialism. Thus, France has been a locomotive driving the development of the European Union, which it sees as a counterweight to Washington.

This has presented a sticky challenge for U.S. progressives who, for the most part, have had little to say about the French or EU challenge, perhaps because of a misplaced 'patriotism,' perhaps because of ignorance, perhaps because of revulsion at Paris’ crude imperialism in Africa, which came under stinging critique once more when recently Rwandan President Paul Kagame basically laid responsibility for the 1994 genocide at France’s doorstep. Unfortunately, this book—other than a sketchy account of the joint Paris-Washington intervention against progressives in Chad—does not deal with the important battleground that is Africa. This is a gross oversight in light of the fact that only recently a deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping force to Cote d’Ivoire was hindered by Paris-Washington tensions, just as events in both the Democratic Republic of the Congo (where an astounding 3 million people have lost their lives in recent years due to war) and the oil-rich Republic of the Congo have been shaped markedly by these imperialist rivalries.

Thus, as this scurrilous anti-French book suggests, ignoring Paris-Washington relationship has become no longer a matter of misfeasance—it has become downright deadly and dangerous. The author is an experienced hit-man for the right-wing, having penned an awful book on the Rev. Jesse Jackson, where, inter alia, he sought to suggest that Jackson was a puppet of the Communist Party-USA. This book has appeared in an atmosphere wherein the GOP—in an echo of an ear where the opposition was painted as tools of Moscow—now suggests that John Kerry, 'looks French'; they have gone so far as to raise pointed questions about his fealty to the U.S. given his ability to speak French. For a while there was an effort in the congressional cafeteria to change the offering of 'French toast' to 'freedom' toast—and this was just one example of a cascading range of absurdly offensive interventions.

Still, this book—even considering its one-sided nature—is a disappointment. Mostly it recounts France’s relations during the 1980s with Iraq, which tracks the U.S. record—recall the infamous 1983 meeting between U.S. envoy Donald Rumsfeld and Saddam Hussein.

Yet, when thieves fall out, truths can emerge and the author does recount striking details about the collaboration between the Reagan Administration and France’s Social Democratic President, Francois Mitterrand, against the former Soviet Union. One has to wonder how this served France’s national interest—no matter how defined—in light of the fact that now with the disappearance of the USSR, the inevitable is occurring and Washington now is targeting France, with its strong Communist and Social Democratic traditions. It should never be forgotten that the erosion of the socialist camp was not solely a result of pressure from U.S. imperialism, as Washington enjoyed tremendous assistance from France, China, and 'Islamic fundamentalism,' among other forces now slated for the chopping block.

The author does make a point of limning the all-important question of 'economic espionage', though he writes as if it is only Paris that is engaged in this venture—though he does quote the arrogant words of former Clinton era CIA Director James Woolsey: '’Yes, my continental European friends, we have spied on you.’' (p. 175) However, the author seeks to whip up U.S. chauvinism by engaging in the well-worn and ridiculous tactic of portraying U.S. imperialism as a perpetual victim: 'Air France,' he writes, 'regularly planted microphones in the seats of its first-class compartment, to record the conversations of U.S. businessmen.' (p.167) Such practices have taken on 'gigantic proportions,' he says, particularly in the ultra-competitive business of arms sales to Arab nations e.g. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the Emirates, etc. (p. 171)

Yet with all the huffing and puffing in this poorly researched tome, the author manages to ignore some of the more sensitive areas of the present U.S-France standoff. U.S. prosecutors have been threatening to indict leading French executives who are quite close to President Jacques Chirac for alleged criminal transgressions and peculations in this country, while French prosecutors have been investigating oil-giant Halliburton and, apparently, have Vice-President Dick Cheney in the bulls-eye. This 'legal' equivalent of Russian Roulette threatens to plunge Paris-Washington relations to an all-time low with consequences too ghastly to contemplate.

Obviously, the U.S. progressive movement has to pay more attention to this critically important realm of relations with the EU and France, particularly. Minimally, unions, churches, fraternal organizations and political parties need to be building bridges—quite urgently—across the Atlantic, not only to Paris but, as well, to the EU capital: Brussels. For as this book amply demonstrates, the U.S. right-wing increasingly sees France and the EU as antagonists who need to be cut off at the knees—but this powerfully armed force is more than capable of inflicting a unique damage on this nation.



The French Betrayal of America By Kenneth R. Timmerman New York: Crown Forum, 2004, 309 pages



--Gerald Horne is a contributing editor of Political Affairs.



» Find more of the online edition.