Jungtinės Amerikos Valstijos ir Prancūzija: sąjungininkai ir konkurentai
The United States of America And France: Allies and Rivals

Summary/Abstract: Straipsnyje apibrėžiama Jungtinių Amerikos Valstijų ir Prancūzijos vieta ir vaidmuo tarptautinėje sistemoje, analizuojama jų veikla Jungtinių Tautų organizacijoje, siekiant įvertinti, kokį vaidmenį Jungtinės Tautos užima šių dviejų valstybių užsienio politikoje. Straipsnyje taip pat analizuojamos JAV ir Prancūzijos pozicijos JT Saugumo Taryboje dėl Irako karo, aiškinamos susipriešinimo priežastys bei aptariama santykių būklė po Irako krizės, taip pat analizuojamos Amerikos ir Prancūzijos pozicijos dėl vykstančios globalizacijos. The United States of America and France are states that have much in common. The USA has the greatest political, economic and military power in the world, and France held this position before the Second World War. Both, the Unites States and France, were the sources of democratic values in the eighteenth century. Currently the two countries have the same values and objectives for the world community: defense of human rights, promotion of democracy, maintenance of international stability and peace, fight against terrorism. However, France has always opposed the United States on one issue or other. It may be in the realm of international diplomacy, where one can discern a distinct distaste for America’s oft-proclaimed sole-superpower status, or on matters of culture, where France is always the first to denounce American “cultural imperialism.” Lately, Franco – American friction has manifested itself most visibly in the UN Security Council over the Iraq war. Both countries realized the necessity to disarm Iraq yet France opposed the resolution authorizing the war against Iraq. France’s antipathy to war, pessimism to crate stability in Iraq and refusal to recognize the leadership of the United States can be conceived as the reasons of the opposition. France is no longer the superpower that it was, and that leads to a strategic difference in how the two countries pursue their goals. In order to play a leading role in the world, France needs international organizations like the United Nations. Whereas the United States, as the only superpower, can act unilaterally. This notwithstanding, the USA still regards the United Nations as an important element of the contemporary international system, participate in the UN lead peace and stability maintenance missions, and is the biggest contributor to the UN budget. In this regard France and the United States are allies. Concerning the matter of globalization, the two countries take different position. The United States of America are often named as a leading nation of globalisation and is interested to accelerate these processes. France, on the contrary, emphasizes the necessity to regulate the process because of its negative impact on developing countries. There is also a strong movement against the globalisation in France that considers it a threat to national culture and traditions.

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