Contents
Acknowledgements / ix Acronyms / xi Introduction / 1
1 Creating a French oil industry: the Iraq Petroleum / 9 Company and the roots of Anglo-French rivalry Paris post-1918 oil problem / 11 France and the Turkish Petroleum Company / 13 Sykes-Picot, 1916: spheres of interest / 15 San Remo, 1920: who owns Iraqi oil? / 17 British or French sovereignty over Mosul? / 19 The Compagnie Franfaise Jes Petroles and Iraqi oil / 21 The United States and Iraqi oil: the 1928 Agreement / 24
2 Friendship with Israel: Fourth and Fifth Republic policies / 31 Marginalization and humiliation in the Levant / 32 The Fourth Republic’s relations with Israel, 1948-58 / 34 Franco-Israeli military cooperation, 1949-58 / 36 The rupture of the Suez invasion, 1956 / 40 Nuclear cooperation: Ben-Gurion and Dimona / 41 Franco-Israeli relations under de Gaulle / 45
3 The ‘re-invention’ of French Arab policy under de Gaulle / 49 Distrust of the United States / 50 Out of Algeria: renewing diplomatic relations with the Arab world / 52 De Gaulle, superpower politics and non-alignment / 55 The 1967 war: de Gaulle’s embargo on Israel / 59 France’s enhanced status in the Arab World / 65
4 French oil policy and relations with Iraq to 1972 / 69 Qasim’s government and the Oil Law of 1961 / 71 Diplomatic relations restored, 1963 / 76 The impact of the June 1967 war on oil policy / 80 Intra-French oil rivalries, Elf challenges the CFP / 81 General Arif in Paris, February 1968 / 85 Elf blocked: controversy and the hiatus of 1969—71 / 89 The consolidation of ties, 1968-72 / 93
5 Iraqi foreign policy and the nationalization of oil / 95 Iraqi foreign policy in the 1970s / 95 Iraq’s relations with the Soviet Union / 98 The nationalization of Iraqi oil / 100 French reactions to nationalization / 101 Saddam Hussein in Paris, June 1972 / 103
6 Jobert to Chirac: constructing commercial and military ties / 109 Georges Pompidou’s policy in the Middle East / 109 Arming Libyans, antagonizing Americans, 1969-73 / 112 Energy and Arab policy under Michel Jobert, 1973-74 / 114 Michel Jobert’s promotion of trade, policy analysis / 117 The influence of Gaullist writers and lobbies, ASFA / 118 Giscard d’Estaing, Jacques Chirac and Saddam Hussein / 121
7 Mitterrand: continuity and the Iran-Iraq war / 129 Franco-Iraqi ties in 1979 / 131 Nuclear cooperation with Iraq / 133 Mitterrand’s election: fearing capital flight, Tammuz destroyed / 135 Summer 1981, trouble with Tehran / 139 Policy continuity: arms sales and ‘pro-Iraqi’ lobbies / 141 Arms, debt and the Super Etendard affair / 143
8 The price of arming Iraq: hostages, Iran and debt / 147 The Iranian backlash / 149 Roland Dumas: reopening relations with Iran / 151 Escalating arms exports to Baghdad, co-belligerence? / 153 Cohabitation in France, hostages in Lebanon, 1986-88 / 156 Arms for debt, debt for oil / 162 Iraq’s supporters in Paris / 166
9 Shifting between two wars, 1990—2003 / 171 Debt and the decline of relations, 1988-90 / 173 Kuwait 1990-91, negotiations and dithering to war / 175 Opposition to sanctions and the revival of bilateral ties from 1996 / 182 Negotiations and the rejection of war, 2002-03 / 187
Conclusion Iraq and the specificities of French foreign policy / 195
Endnotes / 201 Bibliography / 223 Index / 231 |