Word: giscards
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...Soviet offensive in Afghanistan precludes all possibilities of a union with the Socialists and formally closes a chapter of French Eurocommunism. Apparently, the party is willing to sacrifice its strength in France and its standing among other Eurocommunists for a strategy that virtually reassures the re-election of Valerie Giscard d'Estaing...
...whirlwind tour had become urgently necessary in the wake of the French refusal to take part in a five-nation parley with the U.S., originally scheduled for last week in Bonn. Deeply concerned about French President Valery Giscard d'Estaing's coolness to U.S. diplomatic initiatives, Washington decided that even a series of bilateral talks would do more to restore a sense of cohesion within the Western alliance than no consultations at all. "There is no substitute for face to face," said one senior U.S. official on the trip. "It's a hell of a lot easier...
...Giscard's approach is a legacy of De Gaulle's efforts to devise an independent foreign policy that would give France a leading role to play on the world's diplomatic stage. As the proud fathers of détente-the concept, they say, was born during De Gaulle's 1966 state visit to Moscow when he declared that "the cold war period must be ended" -the French claim they have a particular responsibility to keep East-West tensions low. Western Europe is more vulnerable than the U.S.; the Soviet Union is hundreds, not thousands...
Domestic political considerations play a part in Giscard's cautious attitude; he will be up for re-election in May 1981. Wary of accusations from his conservative rival, Paris Mayor Jacques Chirac, that he has abandoned the Gaullist tenets of independence in foreign policy, the President seemingly bends over backward to avoid leaving opponents any room for maneuvering. Such prudence may be excessive. The continued split between France's Communists and socialists, which was aggravated by Party Boss Georges Marchais's overt support for the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, makes Giscard perhaps the most comfortably ensconced political...
...latest American-French rift, sadly enough, reopened old wounds that appeared to be healing. In contrast to his predecessors, Giscard has made a conscientious effort to defuse tensions between Paris and Washington. He has, for example, been far less critical of Carter's economic policies than Schmidt. French military officials now work more closely with their NATO counterparts than they have in years. The U.S. and France have also smoothly coordinated their efforts in Africa. American planes carried the French troops that helped put down the rebellion in Zaire's Shaba province in 1978. The trouble...