Yes, I remember all that. I also remember that de Gaulle demanded that he be given independent authority over U.S nuclear weapons stationed in France, prompting him to give America the boot when Johnson refused (giving you a year to relocate 70,000 personnel and 400 bases - in operation FRELOC [fast relocation], or as one French put it to me to other day with a big grin: operation get the f* out of here. Many of them are still gloating over that.)
It was also de Gaulle who conceived and actually coined the expression describing France's nuclear strategy of deterrence "de tous azimuths" - meaning that French nuclear weapons were to be used and positioned to deter attacks from all directions, including the USA.
And the old bastard meant it, as unlike Sarkozy, he'd managed to do as he said...
You may also want to remember that among many things de Gaulle said, we find his first reaction when he learned about the Allied invasion of North Africa, and the US disaster in the harbor of Oran — when the French troops under Petain's command put the only determined resistance to the Allied landing in North Africa, resulting in 90% casualties on the Allied side, including 307 dead. It goes like this: "Well, I hope the people of Vichy throw them into the sea. You can't break into France and get away with it."
Chris,
Yes, I remember all that. I also remember that de Gaulle demanded that he be given independent authority over U.S nuclear weapons stationed in France, prompting him to give America the boot when Johnson refused (giving you a year to relocate 70,000 personnel and 400 bases - in operation FRELOC [fast relocation], or as one French put it to me to other day with a big grin: operation get the f* out of here. Many of them are still gloating over that.)
It was also de Gaulle who conceived and actually coined the expression describing France's nuclear strategy of deterrence "de tous azimuths" - meaning that French nuclear weapons were to be used and positioned to deter attacks from all directions, including the USA.
And the old bastard meant it, as unlike Sarkozy, he'd managed to do as he said...
You may also want to remember that among many things de Gaulle said, we find his first reaction when he learned about the Allied invasion of North Africa, and the US disaster in the harbor of Oran — when the French troops under Petain's command put the only determined resistance to the Allied landing in North Africa, resulting in 90% casualties on the Allied side, including 307 dead. It goes like this: "Well, I hope the people of Vichy throw them into the sea. You can't break into France and get away with it."
Some friend, huh?