French President Nicolas Sarkozy has announced his country is to return to NATO’s military command, reversing four decades of self-imposed exile. Mr Sarkozy confirmed the decision in a speech to defense experts at the Ecole Militaire staff college in Paris.
President Charles de Gaulle pulled France out of NATO’s integrated military command in 1966, saying it undermined France’s sovereignty.
Critics say France will now be no more than “a clone of Great Britain”. But Mr Sarkozy said there was no sense in France – a founder member of NATO – having no say in the organization’s decisions on military strategy.
“This rapprochement with NATO ensures our national independence,” said Mr Sarkozy. “To distance ourselves would limit our independence and our room for maneuver. He went on: “We have to be progressive. A solitary nation is a nation that has no influence whatsoever. We need strong diplomacy, a strong defense and a strong Europe.”
He said NATO remained a central element of France’s security and defense policies, but stressed that he would not give up the country’s independent nuclear deterrent.
Mr Sarkozy is expected to formalize the move with a letter to NATO before the alliance celebrates its 60th anniversary next month with a summit in the French city of Strasbourg.
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer warmly welcomed Mr Sarkozy’s announcement. “[France’s] full participation in all the civil and military decision-making and planning processes cannot but strengthen the alliance further,” he said.
Correspondents say France’s “independence” from NATO is dearly treasured by many French, and Mr Sarkozy’s move has provoked a furor among those who worry it will now have to bow to U.S. dominance.
But Defence Minister Herve Morin rejected claims France would now be forced to go along with the US on issues like the war with Iraq, which it vehemently opposed, BBC reports.
