EURATOM: Bridging Rapprochement and Radiance of France in the Post-war

Abstract

This article interrogates the question of how France was able to achieve their policy goals, radiance of France (nuclear development), in respect to the relations with those in the post-war

alliance, rapprochement of France (European integration). It argues that Frances membership in

EURATOM provided a venue for pursuance of its political autonomy via rhetorical actions which I

labelled, agree-and-deepen policy, was precisely one such mechanism through which this was done.

In so doing, I open the discussion with critiques to the Rationalist Materialist account on the French

motivation to become a member of EURATOM; namely that France joined EURATOM to accomplish

its nuclear ambition through exploiting all the available sources of EURATOM and the false

controversies contained within the EURATOM defence clause. Next, an alternative explanation is

provided in regards to the influence of EURATOM over France by tracing the path in which the French

foreign policy identity was reconstructed in the post-war period via EURATOM under the framework

of agree-and-deepen policy. Finally, it concludes that EURATOM provided France leeway for

legitimate nuclear development, which satisfied two policy goals demanded by Others and desired by

the French Self, without negatively impacting on the French relations with Others.