France–Israel relations
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France–Israel relations refers to the bilateral foreign relations between France and Israel. France has an embassy in Tel Aviv and a consulate-general in Jerusalem. Israel has an embassy in Paris and a consulate-general in Marseille.
After the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948 and in the early 1950s, France and Israel maintained close political and military ties. France was Israel's main weapons supplier until its withdrawal from Algeria in 1962. After the Six-Day War in June 1967, Charles de Gaulle's government imposed an arms embargo on the region, mostly affecting Israel.[1]
Under François Mitterrand in the early 1980s, French–Israeli relations improved greatly. Mitterrand was the first French president to visit Israel while in office.[2] After Jacques Chirac was elected president in 1995, relations declined due to his support of Yasser Arafat during the first stages of the Second Intifada.[3] The election of French President Nicolas Sarkozy in May 2007 led to a significant warming of ties between the countries, with France's new leader stating that he would refuse to greet any world leader who does not recognize Israel's right to exist.[4]
History
1940s–1950s
The first connection between the Zionist Movement and France was during World War II between the years 1940–1944 when France was under German occupation. After France's liberation by allied forces, David Ben-Gurion was confident that Charles de Gaulle would assist him in the founding of a Jewish state. On 12 January 1949 France recognized the existence of Israel and supported the decision for Israel to join the United Nations. In 1953 France announced that it intended to sell French weapons to Israel.
In June 1956 president of Egypt Gamal Abdel Nasser's actions brought about a closer relationship between Israel and France. Israel was afraid of an Egyptian attack and France saw Nasser as a threat because Nasser supported the anti French insurgency in Algeria. France sent Israel airplanes and tanks and Israel began to prepare for a war with Egypt. In July 1956 Nasser took control of the Suez Canal and then France, Britain and Israel planned a joint operation to take the Suez Canal back under their control. In October the Sinai war broke out and resulted in a complete victory for the Anglo-Israeli-French coalition. However, international pressure led by the U.S. forced the three to return full control of Sinai to the Egyptians. Despite the setbacks of the war, relations between Israel and France grew stronger.[5]
During the late 1950s France supplied Israel with the Mirage - Israel's most advanced aircraft to date and their first serious combat aircraft. During the 1970s Israel used this Mirage model to develop its own fighter aircraft: the Kfir.
In October 1957 an agreement was signed between France and Israel about the construction of the nuclear power plant in Israel, which was completed in 1963. Current Israeli President Shimon Peres was the politician who brokered the deal. In Michael Karpin's 2001 documentary A Bomb in the Basement, Abel Thomas, chief of political staff for France's defense minister at the time said Francis Perrin, head of the French Atomic Energy Commission, advised then-Prime Minister Guy Mollet that Israel should be provided with a nuclear bomb. According to the documentary, France provided Israel with a nuclear reactor and staff to set it up in Israel together with enriched uranium and the means to produce plutonium in exchange for support in the Suez War.[6][7]
1960s
In 1960 Ben-Gurion arrived in France for Israel's first official visit. Until the Six Day War, France was the main supplier of Israel's weapons. After the Six-Day War in June 1967, Charles de Gaulle's government imposed an arms embargo on the region, mostly affecting Israel.[8] In 1969, de Gaulle retired and Israel hoped that new president Georges Pompidou would bring about better relations, but Pompidou continued the weapons embargo.
1970s–1990s
In 1981 François Mitterrand was elected 21st President of the French Republic. Mitterrand was the first left-wing head of state since 1957 and was considered a friend of the Jewish people and a lover of the Bible. In 1982 he visited Israel and spoke in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset.
2000s
On February 13, 2008, Sarkozy spoke at the annual dinner of the French Jewish CRIF (Conseil Représentatif des Institutions juives de France). The address was seen as a sign of newfound warmth between France's Élysée Palace and French Jewry, whose place in French society has been shaken in recent years following a surge in anti-Semitic attacks. "Israel can count on a new dynamic to its relationship with the European Union", said Sarkozy. "France will never compromise on Israel's security."
Israel welcomed Sarkozy's tough stance against the Iran-backed Hamas and Iran-backed Hezbollah. During the 2006 Lebanon War, France played a key role in Europe's efforts to get a quick ceasefire.[9]
On 30 June 2009, French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dismiss Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman from his post, saying "You have to get rid of that man. You need to remove him from this position".[10]
Economic relations
In 2006 French exports to Israel rose to $683 million (€1.06 billion). France is Israel's 11th greatest supplier of goods and represents Israel's ninth largest market. France's main export items are motor vehicles, plastics, organic chemicals, aeronautical and space engineering products, perfumes and cosmetics.
France is the second-leading tourist destination for Israelis, after the United States. At the same time the number of French people visiting Israel has grown considerably over the last few years.
Cultural, scientific and technical cooperation
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France's cultural, technological and scientific cooperation with Israel is based on bilateral agreements that date back to 1959.
In June 2007 a new French Institute opened in Tel Aviv. In honor of Israel's 60th anniversary of its independence, Israel was the official guest at the annual Book Fair in Paris in March 2008.
Since 2004, network research programs have been launched in medical genetics, mathematics, medical and biological imaging, as well as bioinformatics, with nearly 100 researchers involved in each. New programs are expected to be introduced in the areas of genomics, cancer research, neuroscience, astrophysics and robotics.
As part of the French culinary festival "So French, So Good," 12 respected French chefs visited Israel in February 2013 to work with Israeli chefs and hold master classes.[11]
See also
- Dreyfus affair
- International recognition of Israel
- Foreign relations of Vichy France
- History of the Jews in France
- Napoleon and the Jews
References
- ↑ - History of Israel-France Relations
- ↑ Israel - Western Europe
- ↑ Hershco, Tsilla: "The French Presidential Elections of May 2007: Implications for French-Israeli Relations", The Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, May 29, 2007, http://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/docs/perspectives29.pdf
- ↑ Sarkozy attacks Iran for its stance on Israel, YnetNews/Reuters, February 14, 2008, http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3506727,00.html
- ↑ http://books.google.com/books?id=8Rm8IqbPuZIC&pg=PA70&lpg=PA70&dq=france+gave+israel+nuclear+weapons+Algeria+Nasser&source=bl&ots=3eMytrmcFV&sig=iqv4nxPJv1I7brY1lmAxZU22byc&hl=en&sa=X&ei=27oLUL3gL8rX0QHgv9GGBA&ved=0CE8Q6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=france%20gave%20israel%20nuclear%20weapons%20Algeria%20Nasser&f=false
- ↑ Inigo Gilmore (23 December 2001). "Israel reveals secrets of how it gained bomb". The Telegraph.
- ↑ "Documentary Says Israel Got Nuclear Weapons From France". Fox News. Associated Press. 2 November 2001.
- ↑ - History of Israel-France Relations
- ↑ Tsilla Hershco and Amos Schupak, France, the EU presidency and its implications for the Middle-East, The Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, Volume 3 No 2, July 19, 2009, pp. 63-73
- ↑ Russia Today - Sarkozy to Netanyahu: fire your foreign minister
- ↑ Food for Thought, Jerusalem Post
External links
- Association France–Israël (French)
- Sharon's visit to France
- Israel Project (French Israel relations review)
- France-Israel Association (French Embassy)
- History of France-Israel Friendship Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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