#AUKUS

France recalls its ambassadors to US and Australia in submarine deal backlash

BUT NOT THE UK?! 

Issued on: 17/09/2021 - 

Text by: FRANCE 24
Video by: Fraser JACKSON

France on Friday recalled its ambassadors to the United States and Australia in a ferocious row over the scrapping of a submarine contract, an unprecedented step that revealed the extent of French anger against its allies.

President Emmanuel Macron made the exceptional decision due to the “gravity of the announcements on September 15 by Australia and the United States”, said French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in a statement.

The rare diplomatic backlash against France’s allies came two days after Australia announced the scrapping of a major purchase of French conventional submarines in favour of US nuclear-powered submarines.

The announcement represented “unacceptable behaviour between allies and partners”, said the statement.

Australia in 2016 had chosen France's Naval Group, partly owned by the state, to build 12 conventionally powered submarines, based on France's Barracuda nuclear-powered subs in development.

The contract was worth around 50 billion Australian dollars (€31 billion, $36.5 billion) when announced in 2016.

But on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden, along with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, announced a new US security alliance between their countries that would develop an Australian nuclear-powered submarine fleet.

The Australia-UK-US alliance – dubbed AUKUS – has been strongly condemned by France, with Le Drian calling it “a stab in the back”.

US describes France as 'vital ally'

The United States on Friday reiterated that France was a 'vital ally'.

"France is a vital partner and our oldest ally, and we place the highest value on our relationship," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement, adding that Washington was hoping to continue the discussion on the issue at the senior level in the coming days, including during the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York next week.

Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby meanwhile acknowledged that telephone talks earlier between US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and French counterpart Florence Parly showed "that there is still much work to do in terms of our defence relationship with France."

France 24's Kethevane Gorjestani reports on the US response to France's decision to withdraw its ambassador 02:15

Australia said it regrets France's decision to recall its ambassador to Canberra but it values its relationship with France and will keep engaging with Paris on many other issues.

"We note with regret France's decision to recall its Ambassador to Australia," a spokesperson for the foreign ministry said in a statement. "Australia values its relationship with France ... We look forward to engaging with France again on our many issues of shared interest, based on shared values."

China calls alliance 'extremely irresponsible'

Beijing described the new alliance as an "extremely irresponsible" threat to regional stability, questioning Australia's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and warning the Western allies that they risked "shooting themselves in the foot".

China has its own "very substantive programme of nuclear submarine building", Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison argued Friday in an interview with radio station 2GB.

China claims almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in shipping trade passes annually, rejecting competing claims from Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.Beijing has been accused of deploying a range of military hardware including anti-ship missiles and surface-to-air missiles there, and ignored a 2016 international tribunal decision that declared its historical claim over most of the waters to be without basis.

'Directly affecting the vision'

The French ambassador recalls from the United States and Australia -- key allies of France -- are unprecedented. Withdrawing envoys is a last resort diplomatic step taken when relations between feuding countries are plunged into crisis but highly unusual between allies.

"I am being recalled to Paris for consultations," France ambassador to the US Philippe Etienne wrote on Twitter. "This follows announcements directly affecting the vision we have of our alliances, of our partnerships and of the importance of the Indo-Pacific for Europe."

Paris sees itself as a major power in the Indo-Pacific due to overseas territories such as New Caledonia and French Polynesia which give it a strategic and military foothold unmatched by any other European country.

The row has for now at least put on hold hopes of a post-Trump renaissance in Paris-Washington relations under Biden and his Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a fluent French speaker who was educated in Paris.

France's European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune also said Friday that Paris was unable to trust Canberra in ongoing European Union trade deal talks following the decision.

France's Europe Minister Clément Beaune calls the AUKUS submarine deal a 'breach of trust' 00:34



France meanwhile called off a gala at its ambassador's house in Washington scheduled for Friday.

The event was supposed to celebrate the anniversary of a decisive naval battle in the American Revolution, in which France played a key role.

AUKUS overshadows Europe’s Indo-Pacific plan

France had pushed for several years for a European strategy for boosting economic, political and defense ties in the region stretching from India and China to Japan and New Zealand.

The EU on Thursday unveiled its plan for the Indo-Pacific. But the AUKUS headlines overshadowed the EU’s own Indo-Pacific strategy aimed at "exploring ways to ensure enhanced naval deployments by EU Member States to help protect the sea lines of communication and freedom of navigation", according to a statement.

A French diplomat told AFP on Friday that Macron received a letter from Australian PM Morrison on Wednesday morning announcing the decision to cancel the submarine deal.

French officials then decided to reach out to the Biden administration "to ask what was going on", the source said. He added that discussions with Washington took place just two to three hours before Biden's public announcement.

Paris had raised the issue of the Indo-Pacific strategy during the June 25 visit to Paris of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, expressing the importance of its submarine program with Australia, the diplomat said.

“We said that is was for us a very important and critical component in our Indo-Pacific strategy,” he said. Blinken met with Macron during the visit.

The French diplomat said Australia never gave any indication to France before of its intention to scrap the submarine deal, including during a meeting between Macron and Morrison in Paris on June 15.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and AP)

  

AUKUS alliance: Blinken seeks to calm French fury amid diplomatic row

Issued on: 17/09/2021 - 

Video by:

Marc Perelman

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday called France a vital partner in the Indo-Pacific, comments that appeared aimed at calming French anger after the United States, Australia and the UK clinched a deal to supply Australia with submarines. The three countries said on Wednesday they would establish a security partnership for the Indo-Pacific that would help Australia acquire US nuclear-powered submarines and see it scrap a $40 billion French-designed submarine deal. France reacted angrily to the loss of the deal, calling it a "stab in the back." FRANCE 24's French Politics Editor Marc Perelman explains.

  

What does the new AUKUS alliance mean for Japan, South Korea?

Issued on: 17/09/2021 

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that the United States is forming a new Indo-Pacific security alliance with Britain and Australia that will allow for greater sharing of defense capabilities — including helping equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. Northest Asia Editor for Asia Times, Andrew Salmon, explains what this new alliance means for Japan and South Korea.

Elevation of France as Major Arms Exporter in the World Causes and Implications

The global arms trade has long been a subject of scrutiny and debate, with its impacts reverberating across geopolitical landscapes.

BY SYED RAIYAN AMIR
APRIL 20, 2024

Rafale French Air Force. Image source: Wikipedia

The global arms trade has long been a subject of scrutiny and debate, with its impacts reverberating across geopolitical landscapes. In recent years, significant shifts have occurred within this sphere, notably with France’s ascension as a major arms exporter on the world stage. This transformation raises pertinent questions regarding the underlying causes driving France’s newfound position and the implications it carries for international security dynamics. Examining the factors behind France’s rise in arms exports and the potential ramifications of this development is crucial for understanding contemporary geopolitical trends.

Between the periods of 2014–18 and 2019–23, arms exports from the United States, the leading arms provider globally, experienced a notable increase of 17 percent. Conversely, during the same timeframe, arms exports from Russia saw a substantial decline, plummeting by over half at 53 percent. Meanwhile, France’s arms exports witnessed a significant surge, growing by 47 percent, consequently propelling it ahead of Russia to claim the position of the world’s second-largest arms supplier.

In the period of 2019–23, as mentioned earlier France surpassed Russia to claim the position of the world’s second-largest exporter of major arms. French arms exports constituted 11 percent of all arms transfers during this timeframe, marking a notable increase of 47 percent compared to the period of 2014–18. In 2019–23, France supplied major arms to 64 countries, with India emerging as the largest recipient, accounting for 29 percent of French arms exports. The majority of France’s arms exports during this period were directed towards countries in Asia and Oceania (42 percent) and the Middle East (34 percent). Despite ongoing efforts to expand arms sales to other European nations, France’s exports to European states accounted for only 9.1 percent of its total arms exports in 2019–23. Notably, over half of its European arms exports (53 percent) were directed to Greece, primarily comprising transfers of 17 Rafale combat aircraft.

The Surge in France’s Arms Exports: Why?

France’s proactive export policies, including government support, technological advancements, and strategic targeting of regions like the Middle East, fueled a rise in arms exports during the period. This positioned them to capitalize on Russia’s decline as a major exporter following the Ukraine war, allowing France to secure the number two spot with advanced weaponry like the Rafale fighter jet.

It’s noteworthy that India stands as the largest arms importer globally, with France and Russia supplying 33 percent and 36 percent of its imports, respectively. In July 2023, New Delhi granted preliminary approval for the acquisition of six Scorpène submarines and 26 Rafale jets for the Indian Navy. Shortly thereafter, on July 25, reports from France’s La Tribune newspaper indicated Qatar’s contemplation of adding an additional 24 Rafales to its arsenal. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report released in March 2023, France’s share of the global arms trade surged to 11 percent between 2018 and 2022, compared to 7.1 percent in the preceding four-year period. Conversely, Russia’s share of the international arms trade dwindled from 22 to 16 percent during the same period. So, this can be one of the indicators.

Figure 1: The 25 largest exporters of major arms and their main recipients, 2019–23

Source: https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2024-03/fs_2403_at_2023.pdf

The imposition of multiple rounds of international sanctions on Russia may have hindered its ability to access the necessary materials for arms production, thereby hampering its export capabilities. Reports from Ukraine have cast doubt on the efficacy of Russia-built armaments, tarnishing their reputation on the global stage. Some importers have expressed dissatisfaction with Russian products in recent years. India, a longstanding importer of Russian arms suppliers, has raised concerns about the technical performance of Russian weaponry. As noted by Pieter Wezeman, the author of the SIPRI report 2023, India’s discontent has prompted a shift towards sourcing arms from France.

Furthermore, the United States wields significant influence over countries procuring weapons from Russia, a trend that predates the Ukraine conflict, according to Wezeman. For instance, Indonesia opted to abandon a planned purchase of Russian aircraft in 2021 in favor of options from the US and France.

A significant surge in the delivery of Rafale combat aircraft played a pivotal role in driving the growth of French arms exports during the period of 2019–23. In the preceding period of 2014–18, France exported 23 Rafales, a number that skyrocketed to 94 in the subsequent period of 2019–23. Remarkably, these exports accounted for nearly one third (31 percent) of French arms exports during this timeframe. Furthermore, the pipeline for Rafale exports remained robust, with an additional 193 Rafales on order for export by the end of 2023. However, it is noteworthy that the majority of the Rafale aircraft already delivered (96 out of 117) and those on order (178 out of 193) are destined for states outside Europe, including Egypt, India, Indonesia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. This underscores the persistent challenge France encounters in selling its major arms to European states, particularly amidst fierce competition from the United States. Notably, out of the 10 European states that preselected or ordered combat aircraft in the period of 2019–23, eight opted for US F-16s or F-35s, with only Croatia and Greece opting for the Rafale.

In addition to bolstering its sales of combat aircraft, France also witnessed a 14 percent increase in exports of military ships, along with the weaponry required to equip them, between the periods of 2014–18 and 2019–23.

Figure 2: Global share of exports of major arms by the 10 largest exporters, 2019–23

Therefore the Rafale fighter jet, manufactured by Dassault Aviation, has emerged as a cornerstone of France’s recent achievements in the realm of defense exports, according to Olivier Gras, the general secretary of EuroDéfense-France, an association based in Paris comprising civil and military officials. Despite entering service as early as 2002, it wasn’t until 2015 that the Rafale made its inaugural foray into the international market. Since then, these twin-engine jets have found homes in Greece, Qatar, India, and Egypt, with impending deployments to Croatia, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates, which placed an order for 80 Standard F4 Rafales in 2021. The global tally of Rafale deliveries and orders now stands at nearly 500, representing approximately half the volume of its primary American counterpart, Lockheed Martin’s F-35. Moreover, potential orders from additional countries are on the horizon, with Colombia nearing a deal for 16 aircraft while Serbia, historically aligned with Russia’s arms industry, contemplates acquiring 12 planes.

Global military expenditure experienced a significant increase of 9 percent from the previous year, reaching a historic high of $2.2 trillion in 2023. This surge was attributed to heightened insecurity worldwide, fueled by numerous conflicts, as indicated by a recent report from the International Institute for Strategic Studies. Meanwhile, NATO’s budget hike can influence other actors in two ways. First, it sets a precedent. By collectively investing more, NATO strengthens the message of shared security concerns. This can pressure members who haven’t met spending targets to step up.  Second, a larger NATO budget allows for more joint exercises and capabilities, potentially making individual militaries seem less essential. This might nudge some countries towards increasing their own budgets to maintain their national defense posture. And here France was an option to spend on.

Figure 3: Changes in volume of exports of major arms since 2014–18 by the 10 largest exporters in 2019–23

Who are the Importers?

In the period spanning 2019–23, the primary suppliers of major arms to Africa included Russia, constituting 24 percent of African imports, followed by the USA at 16 percent, China at 13 percent, and France at 10 percent. France emerged as the third-largest supplier to sub-Saharan Africa during this period, capturing an 11 percent share of subregional arms imports. Turning to South America, France assumed a prominent position as the leading supplier, contributing 23 percent of subregional imports. Meanwhile, in the Middle East, the United States dominated arms imports, commanding a significant share of 52 percent. Following the USA, France emerged as the next significant supplier, accounting for 12 percent of Middle Eastern arms imports, alongside Italy at 10 percent and Germany at 7.1 percent.

Qatar’s arms imports during the same period predominantly came from the United States, representing 45 percent of Qatari arms imports, followed by France at 25 percent and Italy at 15 percent. Notably, Qatar’s acquisitions included 36 combat aircraft from France, 36 from the USA, and 25 from the UK, in addition to 4 frigates procured from Italy.

Implications of Rising Arms Exports

The surge in arms exports across the globe is poised to have far-reaching implications, reshaping geopolitical dynamics and fostering a climate of heightened tension and competition. As importing countries bolster their military capabilities, several key implications emerge.

Firstly, heightened arms imports are likely to exacerbate existing tensions in importing countries and their surrounding regions. The influx of sophisticated weaponry may fuel regional rivalries and increase the likelihood of conflict, raising concerns about stability and security.

Secondly, importing countries are expected to allocate a larger portion of their budgets towards defense expenditures, reflecting a shift in their strategic priorities. The growing defense budgets signal a commitment to enhancing military capabilities and preparedness in response to perceived threats and geopolitical uncertainties.

Thirdly, the influx of arms into different regions, driven by increased exports from major suppliers, is poised to contribute to a proliferation of armaments. This proliferation not only amplifies the potential for conflict but also complicates efforts towards disarmament and non-proliferation initiatives.

Fourthly,  Eastern Europe, already a region marked by geopolitical tensions and historical rivalries, is likely to experience further strain as arms imports increase. The influx of weaponry, coupled with ongoing political disputes, could exacerbate existing conflicts and raise the risk of escalation.

Fifthly, the surge in arms exports is expected to intensify competition among major exporters, particularly China, France, and Russia. As these countries vie for market share and influence, competition in the global arms trade is set to escalate, potentially leading to new marketing strategies and geopolitical maneuvering.

Sixthly, the rise in arms exports is likely to contribute to heightened polarization among nations, as countries align themselves with different suppliers based on strategic interests and geopolitical considerations. This polarization may further exacerbate regional tensions and complicate efforts towards diplomatic resolution of conflicts.

Finally, India’s increased arms imports from France, despite its longstanding relationship with Russia, signal a significant shift in procurement patterns. This shift underscores India’s strategic diversification efforts and reflects evolving geopolitical dynamics in the region.

The surge in arms exports has profound implications for global security and stability, with tensions likely to rise in importing countries and their respective regions. The growing competition among arms exporters, coupled with increased defense budgets and regional rivalries, underscores the need for concerted efforts towards arms control, disarmament, and diplomatic dialogue to mitigate the risk of conflict and promote peace and security on a global scale.

The elevation of France as a major arms exporter in the world marks a significant juncture in the evolving dynamics of the global arms trade. While driven by various factors such as strategic partnerships, technological advancements, and evolving defense policies, France’s newfound position underscores its growing influence in international security affairs. However, amidst the shifting landscape of arms proliferation, it becomes imperative for policymakers and stakeholders to carefully assess the implications of this trend on regional stability, conflict dynamics, and the broader geopolitical landscape. Through informed analysis and proactive engagement, efforts can be directed towards fostering a more secure and stable global environment.

Syed Raiyan Amir
Research Associate The Center for Bangladesh and Global Affairs (CBGA)

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for PERMANENT ARMS ECONOMY 

France's New Push To Expand Geopolitical Influence In Africa

By The Jamestown Foundation - May 30, 2023

• Macron has been eager to re-establish French influence in Africa, despite myriad issues in the last six years.
• 
  
• rance’s emphasis on the fight against terrorism in the Sahel has further eroded ties between France and the people of Africa.
• 
  
• Currently, Paris is trying to woo African nations to its side by implementing a soft power policy through strengthening ties with civil society and appealing to young people.

On March 4, during his trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), French president Emmanuel Macron shared his vision for France, with Paris remaining deeply engaged in Africa. He portrayed France as the European partner which had the greatest amount in common with African countries in terms of values and provides the most support for mutually beneficial security and trade relationships (Euractiv, March 6). Macron’s ongoing attempt to facilitate France’s re-emergence as a fully-fledged regional security actor in Africa is not occurring rapidly enough to compensate for the country’s decreasing status in its traditional spheres of economic and cultural influence in Africa, however. Macron’s words were nevertheless consistent with what he has said since he was first elected in 2017. Macron has been eager to re-establish French influence in Africa, despite myriad issues in the last six years: armed conflicts have made the Francophone Sahel region a center of insurgency, French troops have withdrawn from Mali, with even the Algerian government indicating that English will be taught in the country’s schools instead of French (Al Mayadeen, October 7, 2022; La Croix, April 3).

France’s Waning Security Position

In the 1990s, French policy towards Africa came under heavy criticism, and the subsequent souring of French-African relations resulted in a decrease in French diplomatic representation on the continent (Le Monde, March 6). Paris’s most significant stumbling block was its failure to act during the Rwandan Genocide in 1994, when France was accused of failing to prevent the actions of its ally, the government of then-President Juvenal Habyarimana, when it began preparations for what would occur (Le Figaro, May 27, 2021). France’s emphasis on the fight against terrorism in the Sahel at the expense of its economic strategy in the past decade has likewise further eroded ties between France and the people of Africa (France 24, May 24, 2022).

Despite a massive, sustained military effort with more than 5,000 troops deployed in countries such as Niger and Chad, France has not been able to successfully counter the threat from jihadists, whose attacks on local communities and security forces continue in the Sahel (Le Point, January 27). France’s waning influence allowed African states to reorient their economic and security partnerships as the continent has once again become a geopolitical battleground. Now Chinese, Russian, and Turkish influence are growing on the continent and presenting alternatives to that of France (AfricaNews, March 15).

In Mali, France’s inability to combat the insurgency in the north of the country was a subtext to the May 2021 coup d’état that catapulted Colonel Assimi Goïta to power (North Africa Post, November 18, 2022). Operation Barkhane, the French military counter-terrorism campaign that began in 2013, became mired in an increasingly impotent fight against the al-Qaeda affiliate, Group for Supporters of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) and Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISGS)—all while political instability engulfed Bamako (France Bleu, November 9, 2022). Since the coup, Goïta has shunned Paris and gravitated toward Moscow, whose Wagner mercenaries were already active in another former French colony, the Central African Republic (CAR) (Le Monde, February 4).

The Return of French Soft Power

Currently, Paris is trying to woo African nations to its side by implementing a soft power policy through strengthening ties with civil society and appealing to young people. In March, during a four-country trip to Central Africa, Macron called for a “mutual and responsible relationship” with African nations, including on climate issues (France 24, March 1). Having prompted a shift towards a lower-profile, more collaborative military approach amid the French withdrawal from Mali, Macron is also trying to foster cultural connections with French-speaking Africa by improving access to visas for Africans to pursue post-graduate study in France (Dzair Daily, February 28).

In July 2022, Macron launched a charm offensive to reboot France’s relationship with Africa, touring Cameroon, Benin, and Guinea-Bissau on his first trip to the continent since winning re-election in April 2022 (Euronews, 26 July, 2022). He also promised to reduce France’s military presence across Africa (L’independant, February 27). Macron further claimed France would circumvent “anachronistic” power struggles in Africa, declaring that African states ought to be treated as equal partners in the area of military and economic cooperation (Le Point, February 27).

Nevertheless, African countries themselves seem to prefer to follow a multi-vector foreign policy. For instance, African states’ attitudes toward China and Russia are shifting as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In a UN General Assembly vote in March 2022, 38 African states condemned Moscow’s war on Ukraine, while 16 states abstained (Africa Renewal, April 21, 2022). Despite this, farmers’ associations from 11 Central African states asserted that disruptions in food supplies caused by the war in Ukraine have led to skyrocketing food prices, reducing purchasing power for many Africans (North Africa Post, September 15, 2022). Many African states, therefore, have adopted a “neutral” position on Moscow’s war and might prefer a “peace deal” that, at present, would secure Russian territorial gains in Ukraine and the flow of food to Africa (Al-Jazeera, February 26).

Conclusion

France currently has neither the tools to replace China, Russia, or Turkey nor the intention to be the dominant power in Africa. However, Turkey’s economic challenges and Russia’s prolonged war against Ukraine could create an opening for France to take a more assertive role in Africa, if they are able to induce African states to distance themselves from other powers (Daily Sabah, April 11). As Paris is realizing in Africa, the fight against jihadists, which has been so crucial to its foreign policy on the continent, can only be won by binding military prowess with local governance initiatives, tackling corruption, and improving the lives of civilians. France will not be able to remain influential in Africa with an over-emphasis in counter-insurgency as it has in the past—instead, a more comprehensive strategy will be needed.

By TheJamestownfoundation.org

How France’s prized nuclear sector stalled in Europe’s hour of need

Agence France-Presse
January 05, 2023

View of French utility EDF's Penly Nuclear Power Plant in Petit-Caux, near Dieppe, France, December 9, 2022. © Benoit Tessier, Reuters

France should be in a strong position as Europe reels from the energy crisis, drawing on the renowned nuclear industry that supplies the lion’s share of its power. But France’s nuclear sector has been going through a tricky time, as a significant proportion of its reactors have had to close for maintenance. Analysts blame a mixture of bad luck and the consequences of a political deal from a decade ago.

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine prompted Europe’s energy crisis and climate change racks the world, you could expect France to be congratulating itself on its vast fleet of nuclear power stations. After all, nuclear energy produces barely any CO2 and does not leave countries relying on Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

France went all in on nuclear after the OPEC embargo sparked the 1973 oil shock – unlike Britain, for example, which tapped then-abundant fossil fuel reserves in the North Sea (and is now one of the countries worst-affected by energy inflation).

Nuclear power now produces some 70 percent of France’s energy – the highest proportion in the world – thanks to this long-term strategy known as the Messmer plan (named after its architect, then PM Pierre Messmer) to nourish domestic nuclear expertise and build a large fleet of nuclear reactors.

“Obviously there was the fact that France did not have large reserves of coal or gas and they weren’t able to start drilling in the North Sea; and there was also that Gaullist desire to ensure national independence, while France already had a certain amount of nuclear expertise because it had its independent nuclear weapons system known as the force de frappe,” explained Jacob Kirkegaard, a senior fellow in economics and trade at the German Marshall Fund Brussels bureau.

Largely thanks to this policy stretching back to the 1970s, French CO2 emissions per capita stood at around 4.5 tons in 2019, compared to 5.2 tons in the UK and 7.9 tons in Germany, which has leaned heavily on Russian gas.

France’s nuclear plants ‘important for Europe’

But rather than enjoying the benefits of its vaunted nuclear industry, France found itself importing electricity from Germany in 2022. By November, a record 26 of France’s 56 nuclear reactors were shut for repairs or maintenance – although as of January 2 that figure had fallen to 15 and is expected to fall to nine by the end of January, according to Olivier Appert, an energy specialist at the French Institute of International Affairs (IFRI) in Paris and a member of the French Academy of Engineering.

Meanwhile the French government is fully nationalizing EDF, the state-controlled energy company running the power stations, to stop it going bankrupt. EDF’s new boss Luc Rémont said in October the company faces a “serious crisis”.

“France’s nuclear energy production was in August 2022 the lowest it’s been for 30 years,” Appert noted.

France has been a “net exporter of electricity” over the past decades, Appert added. But “since the autumn of 2022, in light of the maintenance problems, France became a net importer for the first time in 30 years or so” – even if lower energy demand meant it became an energy exporter again on January 2.

This makes matters worse for Europe as a whole as it faces the energy crunch caused by Putin cutting off the supplies of Russian gas in retaliation for European sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.

“France’s nuclear plants are very important for electricity generation in Europe as a whole,” Appert continued. “The network is very interconnected; each member contributes to the overall security of the system.”

‘Bad luck’

In part, France’s nuclear power stations can be seen as victims of that successful response to the 1973 energy crisis. So many of them were built around the same time as France moved relatively quickly into this current energy paradigm – and that means they have to undergo maintenance around the same time. They were also built according to a single standard – and that means issues found in one plant prompt fixes in others.

“Plants will need to be shut down for maintenance or decennial revision and this happens every two or 10 years,” Appert said. “But the time nuclear power stations were taken out of action was extended a great deal by Covid, because of course people couldn’t move around and do their jobs in the usual way during the lockdowns. So one really musn’t underestimate the effect of Covid in helping cause France’s current nuclear problems.”

As well as the impact of Covid, last summer’s drought was another “bad luck” factor pushing France’s nuclear capacity down, Kirkegaard pointed out, because it meant there was “less water available for cooling reactors”.

However, the current problems are not only down to bad luck. Ahead of the 2012 presidential elections, Socialist François Hollande cut a deal with the Greens in exchange for their support: he vowed to shut the two reactors at Fessenheim, France’s oldest nuclear plant, and cut to 50 percent the proportion of French energy nuclear generates by 2025. After he won, Hollande closed the two reactors – even if he reneged on part of the deal by keeping nuclear’s contribution to French energy needs at around 70 percent.

‘Relic of a bygone age’

Nuclear energy was perceived quite differently a decade ago. The 2011 nuclear disaster at Japan’s Fukushima plant caused by a tsunami made many feel wary of nuclear power – even prompting then chancellor Angela Merkel to promise a phase-out of nuclear energy in Germany, under pressure from the ascendant Greens.

In addition to the Fukushima effect, concerns about the supply security of natural gas and the environmental impact of fossil fuels were less prominent a decade ago. “It wasn’t just Germany but many other European countries, including France, that believed in a relationship with Russia,” Kirkegaard noted. “And back in 2012, especially in Germany but also elsewhere in Europe, plenty of people saw nuclear power as a bigger safety issue than carbon emissions from an environmental point of view,” he added.

All that has changed as heatwaves bake Europe every summer and the invasion of Ukraine exposed Russia as an untenable gas supplier for the old continent. Nearly 80 percent of the French public support nuclear energy, up 20 points from 2016, according to an Elabe poll for Les Échos published in November. Even Germany – with the Greens now in government – is extending the life of three nuclear power stations until April.

“The discourse has changed a lot against natural gas, against fossil fuels more generally, in favor of basically carbon-free energy sources like nuclear,” Kirkegaard noted. “Hollande’s pledge in 2012 is the legacy of a bygone age.”

But the consequences of Hollande’s pact have contributed to France’s current nuclear woes, Kirkegaard continued. In particular, it will have put many talented engineers off the French nuclear sector, he said, because “people are not going to pledge their future to an industry perceived to be in terminal decline”. Moreover, “there’s clearly a reason why so many French reactors are as old as they are”, Kirkegaard added: “They haven’t been consistently replaced – so Hollande’s statements absolutely had an effect.”

A renaissance thanks to Macron?

Even before the energy crunch, Hollande’s successor Emmanuel Macron was keen to renew Messmer’s approach and keep France in the vanguard of the nuclear industry –announcing in 2021 that the “number one priority” for his industrial strategy is for France to develop a cutting-edge fleet of small-scale nuclear reactors by 2030.

Together with this long-term plan, Macron acted to deal with the nuclear situation in the short term with that full nationalization of EDF so the state can pump in funds.

“Nationalizing EDF means a lot of public money can be put in to resolve the problems, and – handily for Macron’s government – because it’s a state-owned company, the money it’s losing, which will be quite significant, will not come up officially on the public books for a while,” Kirkegaard said. “That said, the state will still be paying to sort out EDF,” he cautioned.

During this process, Macron’s strategy will take the French nuclear sector into a new paradigm, away from big reactors such as the one EDF is constructing at Flamanville next to the English Channel, which has been married by delays and cost overruns.

The new approach stands a good chance of bearing fruit, Kirkegaard concluded: “Building smaller reactors makes a lot of sense because they’re a lot quicker and easier to build”, he said. “So you’re much less likely to have building delays, and as well as that it’s much easier to find suitable locations for them because they’re a lot smaller – and that means they’re advantageous for France and especially well-suited for export to more densely populated countries like the UK.”

French honor for Josephine Baker stirs conflict over racism







 Entertainer and American ex-patriate Josephine Baker gestures as she discusses the American Black Power movement, 1970, in Roquebrune, south of France. this is the summary: France is inducting Missouri-born cabaret dancer Josephine Baker, who was also a French World War II spy and civil rights activist – into its Pantheon. She is the first Black woman honored in the final resting place of France’s most revered luminaries. On the surface, it’s a powerful message against racism, but by choosing a U.S.-born figure -- entertainer Josephine Baker – critics say France is continuing a long tradition of decrying racism abroad while obscuring it at home. (AP Photo, File)More

ARNO PEDRAM
Mon, November 29, 2021

PARIS (AP) — On the surface, it’s a powerful message against racism: a Black woman will, for the first time, join other luminaries interred in France’s Pantheon. But by choosing a U.S.-born figure -- entertainer Josephine Baker – critics say France is continuing a long tradition of decrying racism abroad while obscuring it at home.

While Baker is widely appreciated in France, the decision has highlighted the divide between the country's official doctrine of colorblind universalism and some increasingly vocal opponents, who argue that it has masked generations of systemic racism.

Baker’s entry into the Pantheon on Tuesday is the result of years of efforts from politicians, organizations and public figures. Most recently, a petition by Laurent Kupferman, an essayist on the French Republic, gained traction, and in July, French President Emmanuel Macron announced Baker would be “pantheonized.”


“The times are probably more conducive to having Josephine Baker’s fights resonate: the fight against racism, antisemitism, her part in the French Resistance,” Kupferman told The Associated Press. “The Pantheon is where you enter not because you’re famous but because of what you bring to the civic mind of the nation.”

Her nomination has been lauded as uncontroversial and seen as a way to reconcile French society after the difficulties of the pandemic and last year’s protests against French police violence, as George Floyd’s killing in the U.S. echoed incidents in France involving Black men who died in police custody.

Baker represented France’s “universalist” approach, which sees its people as simply citizens and does not count or identify them by race or ethnicity. The first article of the constitution says the French Republic and its values are considered universal, ensuring that all citizens have the same rights, regardless of their origin, race or religion.

In 1938, Baker joined what is today called LICRA, a prominent antiracist league and longtime advocate for her entry in the Pantheon.

“She loved universalism passionately and this France that does not care about skin color,” LICRA President Mario Stasi told The Associated Press. “When she arrived from the United States, she understood she came from a ‘communautaurist’ country where she was reminded of her origin and ethnicity, and in France, she felt total acceptance."

Universalists pejoratively call opposing anti-racism activists “communautarists,” implying that they put community identity before universal French citizenry. Radical anti-racist groups, meanwhile, say that France first needs a reckoning with systemic racism — a term that is contested here — and the specific oppression experienced by different communities of color.

The term “communautarist” is also used to describe American society, which counts race in official censuses, academic studies and public discourse, which is taboo in France and seen as reducing people to a skin color.

For Rokhaya Diallo, a French commentator on issues related to race, “universalism is a utopia and myth that the republic tells about itself that does not correspond to any past or present reality,” she told The AP. “For Black and non-white people, the Republic has always been a space of inequality, of othering through the processes triggered by colonization.”

Lawyers, activists and academics have chronicled discrimination in police violence, in housing and in employment in France, notably against people with African or Arab origins. Universalists say this isn't a structural part of French society, however, identifying racism as a moral matter and not inscribed within the state.

Kévi Donat, a Black French guide who gives tours of Black Paris, said Baker is the “most controversial” figure he highlights in his tours, in part because she initially earned fame in France for dancing in a banana belt that “played into stereotypes around Black and African people.”

“Sometimes Josephine Baker is used to say ‘in the U.S. there was racism, (but) all these Black Americans were welcomed in France,' meaning we’re ahead, that we don’t have that problem here,” Donat said.

Baker was among several prominent Black Americans, especially artists and writers, who found refuge from American racism in France after the two World Wars, including the famed writer and intellectual James Baldwin.

But Françoise Vergès, a political scientist on questions of culture, race and colonization, said “symbolic gestures” like putting Baker in the Pantheon aren’t enough to extinguish racial discrimination in France.

“In 2021, even if it’s morally condemned, racism still exists and still has power over people’s lives,” she said.

In addition to her stage fame, Baker also spied for the French Resistance, marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr. in Washington, and raised what she called her “rainbow tribe” of children adopted from around the world.

For Stasi, the LICRA president, her “fight is universalist, so nationality in some way is irrelevant. ... She perfectly inscribes herself in the (French) fight for ‘Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.’”

“Of course there was racism in France, but it wasn’t institutionalized like it was in America during segregation,” Kupferman said.

For Vergès, this obscures France’s own history of racism and colonialism, which includes a brutal war with Algeria, a former French colony, when it fought for independence from 1954 to 1962.

“It’s always easier to celebrate people who aren’t from your country,” she said. “It avoids questioning your own situation at home.”

Verges explained that moving abroad for anyone may offer some protection from racism, simply because you are seen by locals as different anyway, more American or French or Nigerian than Black.

“A country’s racism is in relationship with its own history,” Vergès said. “You also have French Black people in the U.S. who find it less racist than France, because being French protects them from being treated like Black Americans.”

Baldwin, the American writer, noted the same thought in a 1983 interview with the French news magazine Le Nouvel Observateur.

“In France, I am a Black American, posing no conceivable threat to French identity: in effect, I do not exist in France. I might have a very different tale to tell were I from Senegal — and a very bitter song to sing were I from Algeria," he said.

‘Black and treated as such’: France’s anti-racism protests expose myth of colour-blind Republic

EUROPEAN IMPERIALISM AND COLONIALISM 
IS THE SOURCE OF ALL ARYAN RACISM

Issued on: 10/06/2020 - FRANCE24/AFP

Protesters attend a rally against racism and police brutality in Nantes, western France, on June 8, 2020. © Stéphane Mahé, REUTERS Text by:Benjamin DODMAN

The unprecedented wave of protests that swept French cities over the past week has exposed cracks in the country’s universalist model, lifting long-standing taboos and fuelling calls to shed the “myth” of a Republic immune to racism
Maelle B. dithered at length before heading to the Paris courthouse to protest against racism and police brutality. Sporting a broad face mask, the 23-year-old student from the Paris suburbs carried milk and eye drops in her rucksack to ease the sting from teargas.

“We’re black, Arab, white etc. This is the reality. And we need to stop pretending that blacks and others are not discriminated against,” she said, holding up a sign that read: “It’s not black vs white. It’s everyone vs racists”.

Maelle was among more than 20,000 people who rallied in northern Paris on June 2 to vent their anger and frustration over discriminations that have been allowed to fester unchallenged for decades. Inspired by the global protest movement triggered by the George Floyd killing in the US, the Paris gathering was France’s largest such rally in decades.

“Of course France and America are very different countries, but they have a common enemy in racism,” said Maelle. “Nothing will ever change until people are educated about racism.”

White privilege

The June 2 gathering was just the first in a wave of rallies that have swept French cities in recent days, surprising even their organisers by the size and diversity of the crowds. It reignited a longstanding dispute about policing in the immigrant-rich suburbs of France’s largest cities, forcing the government into a rare admission that “there are racist police officers” and that such deviance cannot be tolerated.

Rokhaya Diallo, a prominent anti-racism campaigner who attended the Paris rally, said she had never seen such a large gathering before. In an interview with FRANCE 24, she credited the impressive mobilisation with helping to lift entrenched taboos.

“Racism and police brutality were largely hushed by the media before,” Diallo explained. “The coverage now is still often skewed against the protesters, but at least these subjects are considered worthy of debate.”


For Maelle M. (right) and her friend Aline, tackling racism is they key to healing the fraught relationship between police and youths in the suburbs. © Benjamin Dodman, FRANCE 24

Beyond the issue of policing, the mobilisation has led to a new bout of soul-searching about the long-neglected cracks in the French Republic’s universalist model, which undermine its cherished principles of égalité and fraternité. Mirroring debates taking place in the US, it has prompted talk of “white privilege” — a notion France’s nominally colour-blind Republic is deeply uncomfortable with.

In a searing letter read out on France Inter radio on June 4, prominent novelist Virginie Despentes compared treatment of racial minorities with the relative privilege of being white.

“In France we are [supposedly] not racist, and yet the last time a waiter refused to serve me I was with an Arab; the last time I was told to show my ID, I was with an Arab; the last time a person I was waiting for almost missed a train because police stopped her, she was black,” Despentes wrote.

She added: “A white person like me can move freely through the city without even noticing the police. [...] I cannot forget I am a woman. But I can forget I am white. That’s what it means to be white. To think about it or not, depending on your mood. In France, we are not racist, but I don’t know a single black or Arab person who has such a choice.”

Republican ‘mythology’

The racialised nature of inequality in France is a no-brainer for Maboula Soumahoro, a specialist of African diaspora studies at the University of Tours.

“I am black and I am treated as such,” Soumahoro told FRANCE 24 in a televised interview earlier this year. She said France’s reluctance to address such matters derives in part from a misreading of its history.

“France is not blind to racism. France thinks it’s blind to racism,” she explained, arguing that French colonialism and slave trade had “produced race” throughout the world, but outside mainland France.

“Because slavery was illegal on the mainland, people in France have the impression that this hyper-racialised history that is characteristic of the modern world only concerns the Americas, when in fact we have our own history,” Soumahoro said.

According to Diallo, denial of racism is a legacy of the French Republic’s “mythology”.

“We are fed the story of a country that is blind to colour and impermeable to racism, but this is merely a mystification,” she said. In a perverse effect, she argued, this denial prevents the country from addressing the problem in the first place.

“France won’t give itself the means to measure and address racial discriminations,” Diallo explained. “The country continues to view racism from a moral and individual standpoint. In doing so, it excludes the possibility of enacting broad policies that can tackle the structural problem of racism.”

Social and racial divides

While France famously doesn’t compile official statistics based on faith, ethnicity or skin colour, racial discrimination in all spheres of public life has been widely documented, frequently overlapping with socio-economic inequality.

The intersecting social and racial disparities were glaringly exposed during the nationwide lockdown imposed in mid-March to stem the spread of the coronavirus. The immigrant-rich Seine-Saint-Denis department northeast of Paris – France’s poorest – accounted for a disproportionately high number of both fatalities from Covid-19 and fines handed out for breaching the lockdown rules.

There are obvious reasons for this. The combination of large families in cramped quarters and a lack of doctors and hospital beds left the local population particularly exposed to the virus. And while many Parisians fled to countryside residences or switched to working from home, the capital’s poorer suburbs supplied most of the frontline workers who kept the metropolis running.


Touching on this subject in her letter last week, Despentes noted that many commentators added insult to injury by attributing the high mortality to a lack of discipline.

“In France we are not racist, but when we were told that the death rate in Seine-Saint-Denis was 60 times higher than the national average, not only did we not care, we even had the nerve to suggest this was because ‘they don’t confine themselves properly’,” the novelist wrote.

At the June 2 rally, protesters said this mix of indifference and condescension was apparent in the way much of the media and the political establishment treated their grievances.

Divy Vasanth, a former journalist, pointed to the case of Camélia Jordana, a French singer and actress of Algerian origin who recently caused a storm by using the term “massacre” to talk of police violence in the suburbs. The ensuing backlash, he argued, was indicative of a society that ignores people so long as they live in the banlieue and expects them to be grateful and “shut up” when they are successful.

“When [protest leader] Assa Traoré speaks, she’s told to shut it because she’s from the suburbs. And when Camélia Jordana says something, she’s told she has no reason to complain,” Vasanth said. “They don’t listen to what we have to say: they mock the words we use and ignore the substance.”

Racism ‘not a priority’

Carole Reynaud-Paligot, a historian and sociologist who recently curated an exhibition on racism at the Musée de l’Homme in Paris, traces the origins of France’s unspoken racism to the “contradiction” between the French Republic’s universalist principles and the reality of colonialism.

“The result of this contradiction is a form of universalism that is itself not universal, tainted by a sense of superiority and a tendency to depreciate other cultures,” she explained. “Racism is derived from this context of domination, a context that is still at play today, most notably in France’s relations with the so-called developing world.”

Over the years, French ambivalence regarding this past has translated into widely differing political initiatives. In 2001, under a Socialist government, lawmaker Christiane Taubira — one of only a handful of black politicians to have held a high-ranking ministerial portfolio under France’s five republics — sponsored a landmark bill that recognised slavery as a crime against humanity. Just four years later, a conservative administration sought to pass a law stating the “benefits” of colonisation for France’s colonial subjects, until a backlash led by historians forced it to back down.

Reynaud-Paligot said French authorities had failed to identify the legacy of racism as a threat to the unity of the French Republic and the legitimacy of its institutions.

“School programmes continue to be skittish and shy about racism, as though this were not a priority,” said the historian, for whom the situation is even worse when it comes to training civil servants.

“Studies have shown that racism has largely penetrated state institutions, particularly the police and prefectures,” she said, referring to administrative bodies that represent the national government at the local level. “A huge training effort is required in such institutions, but this is not seen as a priority.”

Instead, she added, officials “have been obsessed with the threat of radicalisation ever since the recent wave of terrorist attacks,” neglecting the widespread discrimination that has provided the Republic’s foes with such fertile terrain.

Though born out of legitimate concerns, “the psychosis over radicalisation in turn amplified racial prejudice,” said Diallo, pointing to a “climate of suspicion that only increased the existing racism against minorities perceived to be of Muslim faith", giving free reign to an already prejudiced security apparatus.

France’s unprecedented drought shows climate change is ‘spiralling out of control’

Aude MAZOUE 

AFP

As global warming accelerates, the spectre of drought haunts France’s once verdant farmland. Even now, before the start of summer, 15 administrative départements have had to restrict water use while farmers warn that the current situation will have an adverse impact on crop yields.

© Pascal Pochard-Casabianca, AFP

Few people in France are talking about this looming catastrophe – but all the signs of a record drought are there.

“No region has been spared. We can see the earth cracking every day. Yesterday I was at a farmer’s house in the Puy-de-Dôme region [in central France]; he was watering the wheat. If things carry on like this, farmers who can irrigate their crops will be able to deal with it but the others will face a dramatic reduction in their yields,” Christiane Lambert, the head of France’s biggest agricultural union the FNSEA, told AFP on Monday.

Since last autumn we’ve seen “huge droughts” in Spain and Portugal and the same phenomenon has spread to southern France, Lambert said. But “what is unusual this season is that drought is affecting regions north of the Loire”, the river that divides southern and northern France.

‘The water tables couldn’t be filled’

The French agriculture ministry is all too aware of the crisis. “Winter crops such as wheat and barley, currently growing [before cultivation later on], are starting to experience conditions that will affect yields,” a spokesperson said. The hot and dry weather France has seen over the past few weeks could also affect spring crops like corn, sunflower and beet – as well as the fodder needed to feed livestock.

Drought will not only undermine the food supply but has effects further afield. “As well as farming, drought has a huge impact on a lot of other things – like buildings,” warned hydrologist Emma Haziza. “We’re seeing more and more houses collapsing. This is unprecedented in France. The damage droughts create is more expensive to deal with than [the consequences of] floods and it will have huge long-term economic consequences.”

>> 'Code red for humanity': Bombshell UN climate change report shows global warming accelerating

France’s energy flows could also be affected. “What’s more, drought has a negative impact on energy production, as nuclear power plants need a lot of water to cool the reactors.”

A rise in temperatures this April – even after the first day of the month saw snowfall in France – caused a 25 percent drop in rainfall from normal patterns. This heatwave is “remarkable in terms of how early it is, how long it is lasting, and how widespread it is geographically”, France’s Meteorological Office said.

Combined with unusually low rainfall last winter, these conditions have produced the current drought: A deficit of rain over two successive seasons meant “the water tables couldn’t be filled”, Haziza said.

“So very quickly we ended up in a critical situation – before summer has even started.”

For Haziza, who studies how water is distributed and circulated around the planet, the reasons for the current shortage are clear.

>> ‘Humanity is bullying nature – and we will pay the price,’ WWF chief tells FRANCE 24

“The lack of rain is directly caused by climate change; there’s no doubt about that,” she said. “Drought is one of the first consequences we can see. As things stand, this phenomenon is occurring sooner and sooner and becomes more widespread every year.”

Indeed, this is the first time France has endured what meteorologists call a “flash drought” – a phenomenon usually experienced by countries that are more hot and arid, with soil and crops drying up in just five days.

‘Spiraling out of control’

Drought has hit some regions particularly badly – especially in southeastern France, the east of the country and the Poitou-Charentes region in the west. “Some regions’ water tables manage to fill up easily while others don’t,” Haziza said. “But now, even regions that thought they wouldn’t have a drought, like northern France – not to mention large parts of northern Europe, including Belgium – are beginning to suffer from its effects.”

By imposing restrictions on those 15 départements, the French government is managing the crisis – but remains far from tackling its root cause. The measures vary by département – from banning people watering gardens or fields at specific times to a total ban on using water for washing your car.

After talks with France’s water companies and farmers’ representatives, the agriculture ministry announced that the Third Agricultural Revolution, a fund launched in April aimed at helping farmers deal with climate change, will be doubled to €40 million.

The French government also announced in late April that water companies could spend an extra €100 million to help farmers adapt to climate change or to create new reservoirs.

France has done better than most developed countries at responding to the threat of climate change, and began transitioning away from fossil fuels to nuclear power in the 1970s. President Emmanuel Macron has recently reiterated his support for nuclear energy.

>> France unveils nuclear power overhaul – with an eye on China

Even so, measures aimed at dealing with the current drought are nothing compared to the forces of climate change driving it. France must make long-term changes to its agricultural model, Haziza said, including a shift from its current production-oriented paradigm – which fuels the drought problem by driving deforestation.

“The whole system is spiralling out of control,” she said. “We’re running head on into climate change.”

This article was translated from the original in French.