Charles De Gaulle and the Break with Atlanticism

Abstract

In breaking France from the allegiances of American-dominated NATO and moving her to a leadership role among the world's nations, Charles de Gaulle demonstrated the skills of a master statesman, capable of using all of the primary elements of national power to achieve his strategic objectives. This was de Gaulle at his finest -- able to define and support national interests while in possession of little apparent power, able to set goals and objectives and achieve them through an extraordinarily broad-reaching course of action. Under de Gaulle's stewardship, French security policy remained remarkably consistent. Although his diplomacy was exceedingly supple, he remained adamantly devoted to France's freedom, independence, and security. Likewise, he was steadfast in his efforts to restructure European, Atlantic, and eventually even global politics to enhance France's position, while contributing to a more flexible and stable international system.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1995
Accession Number
ADA440681

Entities

People

  • Joseph F. Fil Jr.

Organizations

  • National War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Agreements
  • Alliances
  • Defense Systems
  • Diplomacy
  • Information Operations
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Organizations
  • Leadership
  • National Security
  • Negotiations
  • New York
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Security
  • Ussr
  • War Colleges

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • International Relations and European Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies