'With a Little Help from our Friends': How France Secured an Anglo-American Continental Commitment, 1945-54

Abstract

One of France's primary goals after the Second World War was to establish a favourable and durable balance of power on the European continent. From France's perspective, however, the rise of Soviet power threatened this goal. To balance Soviet conventional might, France sought to enlist Anglo-American military forces. Although sympathetic to French concerns, neither Britain nor the United States was willing to commit its military forces to Europe on a long-term basis. But through a combination of diplomacy, statecraft, and chance, France succeeded in late 1954 in forcing the Anglo-Americans to remain in Europe despite their reluctance. This affair demonstrates that European security arrangements championed by America and Britain could not proceed without French cooperation.