June 29, 2024

The Party Platforms: International (and Military) Policies

Foreign policy is of major interest in the upcoming National Assembly elections, and the programs of the Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) the Rassemblement National (RN), and Ensemble (Presidential Majority) are online and easily accessible. The RN program features Jordan Bardella, Ensemble features Gabriel Attal; the NFP has a colorful graphic, with no photos at all.

Nouveau Front Populaire

The two gravest foreign policy issues are Ukraine and Gaza. Raphaël Glucksmann, who headed the Socialist Party European list, insisted that support for Ukraine be included; otherwise, he would not personally join the NFP coalition.

“A Democrat de Combat,” talking about Ukraine two months before the elections.

And the official Popular Front release, issued on June 22, with an evocation of the threat of fascism and the original Popular Front in 1936.

Olivier Faure, the Chairman of the Socialist Party, was an important part of the formation of the group, and he managed to pull Glucksmann in–but the price was support of Ukraine. The wording on Ukraine calls for checking the “war of aggression of Vladimir Putin” and for him to answer for his crimes before international justice: unwavering defense of sovereignty and liberty of the Ukrainian people as well as the integrity of its frontiers, by the delivery of necessary weapons, the canceling of its foreign debt, the seizure of the wealth of the oligarchs who contribute to the Russian war effort, as permitted by international law, the sending of blue helmets [UN Peacekeeping forces] to secure the nuclear power plants.” (p. 6 of the party program).

That is for Glucksmann, and it is a direct contradiction to Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s disdain for the idea that there is a separate Ukrainian people. It also directly lays the blame for the war on Russia rather than NATO expansion, an almost constant trope for pro-Putin supporters (the RN and, again, Mélenchon).

The NFP statement on Gaza called for an end to the support of the “extreme right” Netanyahu government, along with the pursuit of both Hamas leaders and Netanyahu’s government before the International Criminal Court; an “embargo” of the delivery of weapons to Israel; sanctions against the Netanyahu government for not respecting international law in Gaza and Cisjordan; immediate recognition of a Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel; free elections under international supervision for the Palestinian State. This statement broadly reflected the Left’s (worldwide) call for a two-state solution and a ceasefire. There was also, however, a clause (the second one) that again slapped back at La France Insoumise, which had refused to condemn the October 7 massacres as a “terrorist” action; several members of the party had referred to them as “freedom fighters.” The clause read as follows: “Act for the liberation of the hostages held since the terrorist massacres of Hamas, whose theocratic goal we reject, and for the liberation of Palestinian political prisoners.” The last phrase reflected a sort of parity but also a kind of compromise, with the definition of “political prisoners” to be determined, and likely contentious. The specification of the “theocratic goal” of Hamas was carefully worded as well, to allow for acceptance, perhaps, of other Hamas goals.

This party platform is far more extensive in its discussion than are either of the other two, and also reflect a desire for engagement with peacemaking–also regrettably absent from the other two.

Rassemblement National

The RN statement on Ukraine is significantly less direct than that of NFP: “Our country is today confronted with a return of power politics, as illustrated by the war in Ukraine, which threatens our collective security. We have therefore the duty, to guarantee the defense of our interests on the global scale, to improve considerably our defensive capability.” This included the decision to “preserve full and entire sovereignty over our nuclear deterrence [in other words, don’t put this military arm under a joint command] and to guarantee all of our military capabilities [notre modèle d’armée complet].” And finally, “Refuse all transfer of competencies to the European Union in the domains of defense and diplomacy, and favor a European preference in terms of military purchases by European states.(p. 10).

This statement says much more than its brevity suggests, and encapsulates the anti-US, pro-Putin orthodoxy of the party. The “war in Ukraine” clouds the question of how that war got started–and opens the way to the frequent right-wing argument that NATO is the cause. (If you want to see examples of that argument in this country, go to X.com and look up “Ukraine.”) In addition, they are prepared to take France out of the unified NATO command and to steer clear of any joint European force. And they want Europe as a whole to stop purchasing US-made weapons, a common anti-US theme.

Jordan Bardella, in a brief message before Sunday’s vote. He ends with “Nous somme prêts,” “We are ready,” which has been a sort of rallying cry of the RN–“ready” to take power. He also mentions, with some emphasis, that they will take control of ALL of French territory–an easily understood reference to a frequent complaint, by the RN and others, that there are certain areas in France that have been entirely given over to Islam.

Ensemble, of course, is in power now, and they have both the advantage (and potential liability) of speaking about what they have already done. They make no mention of Ukraine and Gaza in their program. France will remain in NATO and maintain its own nuclear deterrence. “These choices, that some of our opposition would want to call into question, guarantee the sovereignty of our nation.” They will, from this year to 2030, double the military budget of the nation, as recently set forth, “to stand up to new threats and cause France and its singular voice to be respected in the concert of nations.”( p. 11)

In remaining in NATO, they are in opposition to both La France Insoumise (of the New Popular Front) and the RN. In maintaining nuclear deterrence, they are in opposition to the New Popular Front and in agreement with the RN. The use of the term “sovereignty” has become something of a dog whistle, suggesting some independence from the European Union–even though Macron is very much in favor of the Union, and has spoken of creating a united European command–though that is probably off the table at the moment.

Ce dimanche, votons pour la République et contre les extrêmes.

Votons et battons-nous pour nos valeurs. Votons et faisons voter pour les candidats Ensemble pour la République.

Je compte sur vous. 🗳️🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/TCYuUfh82t
— Gabriel Attal (@GabrielAttal) June 28, 2024