Ironies of French Foreign Policy

Or, Why Americans Distrust The French

"More generally, we appeal for restraint in the military operations that are in progress on the ground."
Statement by the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson on the assault in Fallujah
(Paris, November 9, 2004)

In the second of two stunning days that stood to alter French-Ivory Coast relations — and perhaps Ivory Coast itself — French forces seized strategic control of the largest city, commandeering airports and posting gunboats under bridges in the commercial capital, Abidjan.….The chaos erupted Saturday when Ivory Coast warplanes launched a surprise airstrike that killed nine French peacekeepers and a civilian American aid worker. The government later called the bombing a mistake. France hit back within hours, wiping out Ivory Coast's newly built-up air force — two Russian-made Sukhoi jet fighters and at least three helicopter gunships — on the ground.
Sun Nov 7AP Africa
PARFAIT KOUASSI, Associated Press Writer