23 March 2009
Obama Welcomes France’s Full Return to NATO
Command reintegration strengthens trans-Atlantic alliance
Washington — President Obama welcomes French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s decision to fully return France to NATO as a move that will allow the United States and its trans-Atlantic partners to work together more effectively to confront shared security challenges.
“President Sarkozy’s leadership has been essential and is much appreciated,” Obama said in a March 21 statement. “France’s full participation in the NATO military command structure will further contribute to a stronger alliance and a stronger Europe.”
The announcement from Paris comes ahead of Obama’s first visit to Europe as president, where he will join Sarkozy at the London Summit of the G20 developed and emerging economies April 2, then attend the 60th Anniversary NATO Summit hosted jointly by France and Germany April 3–4, with events in Baden-Baden and Kehl, Germany, and in Strasbourg, France.
France is a founding member of the 26-nation alliance and a longtime contributor to NATO missions from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo to Afghanistan, but has not participated in the alliance’s multinational military command since 1966, when President Charles de Gaulle withdrew France from the decision-making body out of concerns over preserving the country’s foreign policy independence.
In a March 11 speech at the École Militaire in Paris, Sarkozy announced his intention to end France’s self-imposed exile from the alliance’s leadership. Times have changed, he said, and as the alliance’s fourth-largest contributor of funds and deployed troops, France can better protect its interests in the face of emerging security challenges by having a voice in strategic discussions at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
“A nation alone is a nation with no influence,” Sarkozy said. “In concluding this process, France will be stronger and more influential.”
While Sarkozy’s plans do not require parliamentary approval, Prime Minister François Fillon put the question of France’s role in NATO to a debate in the National Assembly, where it won a March 17 confidence vote by a margin of nearly 100 ballots.
By fully rejoining the alliance, France’s military will benefit from support with force modernization and greater interoperability with its NATO allies. Full membership may also open new opportunities for the French defense industry, say analysts, as well as build support for closer defense cooperation among European nations — a French policy effort that Obama says he would support in the context of revitalizing trans-Atlantic ties. (See “NATO Faces Growing Challenges as 60th Anniversary Approaches”)
“The NATO alliance has been the cornerstone of trans-Atlantic security for the past 60 years. The United States is committed to its success, and knows that it is through close cooperation with allies and partners that we can overcome our most difficult challenges,” Obama said, adding that at the summit, “I look forward to discussing ways to ensure that our strengthened alliance, with France as a full participant in all its structures, will be as important in the 21st century as it was in the 20th century.”
The complete text of Obama’s statement is available from America.gov.
