Mitterrand's France, the End of the Cold War, and German Unification

A Reappraisal

Bibliographic Data

ID12696147
AuthorsFrederic Bozo (Délégation Régionale Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur et Corse, corresponding author)
Year2007
Volume7
Issue4
Pages455-478
Publication date2007-10-08
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueCold War History (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1468-2745 • E-ISSN: 1743-7962
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14682740701621689
OpenAlexW2065858527
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited13

France's role is often overlooked in the abundant literature on the end of the Cold War. In addition, most accounts tell of the country's alleged lack of understanding for the democratic revolutions in the East and of its supposed attempt to block German unification. Yet archival research, now becoming possible, which allows for a thorough reappraisal, categorically invalidates most of this. In spite of concerns over the risk of instability – which were shared by other key players – French diplomacy in fact played an important and constructive role in the events of 1989–91, not least through the relaunch of European integration which led to the 1992 Maastricht Treaty. The French case provides a useful reminder that the dominant narrative of these events – with its almost exclusive focus on the superpowers (the US to begin with) and its lack of interest in European actors or factors – needs to be revised

Archaeology · Cold war · Economic history · German · Political science · Politics · Unification · Communism, Protests, Social Movements · Computer Science · European history and politics · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics · History · Law

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