Welcome to DouglasDeBono.Com, the Cyberspace Home of author Douglas De Bono

Welcome to DouglasDeBono.Com, the Cyberspace Home of
author Douglas De Bono.

France, Germany, Friends and Foes

Twice in the last century America liberated France and restored peace to Europe. For the better part of the century, America maintained a nuclear and conventional umbrella that contained Soviet hegemony—a strategy that cost the United States trillions of dollars and brought freedom to Eastern Europe.

America left over 124,000 war-dead in 19 cemeteries, representing American sacrifice in two world wars. Ten of these cemeteries are located in France. Personally, I had a great uncle who was gassed in the trenches during World War I; another uncle was shot down twice in World War II, and my wife’s uncle is buried at St. Avold. He died thirty days before the Battle of Bulge in fighting around Metz.

Let’s examine the record:

1. France is not speaking German, because Americans died to liberate her.
2. Germany is no longer a divided country, because America won the Cold War.
3. Western Europe was rebuilt, because America launched the Marshall Plan that followed up American blood with American treasure and helped rebuild Europe after World War II.
4. France holds a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, because America allowed her to be one of the four major powers at the end of World War II.
5. Western Europe is not a Soviet gulag, because America stood her ground.
6. When America asked for over flight rights in April 1986 to prosecute OPERATION ELDORADO CANYON (Reagan’s strike on Libya), France refused.
7. When America deployed the Pershing II missiles as a counterforce weapon to Soviet mobile missiles, France protested.

An old friend commented over lunch that he did not understand the French position. To his thinking, it seemed France had decided to walk off the cliff. Henry Kissinger seemed dismayed that France was actively working against the United States. Certainly, the anti-Franco rhetoric continues to grow in volume and anger. Even the self-absorbed American congress has renamed French fries to freedom fries and discussed banning the import of Perrier and Evian water (I’m sure the puny Francophones are trembling beneath their berets over that!).

An ally and a friend might disagree with American policy vis-à-vis Iraq, but a friend would never actively work against our policy unless it directly threatened their national security. The elimination of Saddam Hussein might disrupt French, German and Russian commercial interests, but by any measure, the elimination of Saddam Hussein strengthens European, Russian and American security.

In addition to the very public actions taken by France, Germany and Russia at the U.N. Security Council, the following is a partial list of less than friendly (outright stupid) actions taken on behalf of Iraq:

1. France built the al-Tammuz and al-Toweitheh reactors. Al-Tammuz is better known as Osiraq (destroyed in 1981 by Israel). Osiraq could produce enough plutonium for 3 or 4 atomic weapons per year. However, al-Toweitheh is connected to Group 4 and Group 5 (see my article on Saddam’s Nuclear arsenal in the FYEO section).
2. Prior to 1991 and the conclusion of the Gulf War, French arms sales totaled $25 billion.
3. Post 1991 (during the sanctions and embargo period); French sales totaled $3.5 billion to Iraq.
4. Most of the chemical and biological warheads discovered in Iraq contain German parts or are German manufactured.
5. Saddam’s nuclear bombproof bunkers were designed and built by German construction companies. (Of course, these were built prior to the GBU-28 bunker buster.)
6. Since the 1980s German chemical companies have exported precursor chemicals for poison gas and dual-use pharmaceutical products for biological weapons.
7. In 1990, Russian virologist Nelja Maltseva allegedly sold the highly virulent and weaponized Aralsk small pox strain.
8. French aircraft and helicopter parts have been shipped into Iraq as recently as January 2003.
9. French middlemen brokered a deal to ship HTPB (a solid rocket fuel binder) from Qilu Chemicals to Syria and to Iraq. Qilu is a Chinese company based in Shandong Province. The Qilu Chemicals website boasts that they make calcium hydroxide and HTPB. This is a chemical specifically banned under the U.N. oil-for-food program.
10. Twelve German banks, five French banks, five British banks, two Austrian banks, two Swiss banks, one Spanish bank and one American bank have financed Iraq’s weapons build up (list available here).
11. Of the 150 companies named by Iraq’s December 4, 2002 Full and Final Disclosure document, there were 24 American companies, over 80 German companies and an undisclosed number of French companies.

Iraq has built up a $9 billion debt to French companies over the last ten years. In gratitude, Iraq has granted an exclusive contract to the French oil giant, TotalElfFina, for the development of the massive Majnoon and Bin Umar fields located in southern Iraq. The contract is estimated to be worth between $65 and $75 billion. It is virtually unprecedented to grant exclusive rights.

France and Germany have not earned the right to behave in such a cavalier manner. France was overrun twice in the last century by German armies. How dare the Germans arm and outfit a fascist regime like Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, and what right does France have to lecture the United States? After all, America either directly or indirectly liberated Europe (twice), Eastern Europe and most of Asia.

I have come to the conclusion that France, and to a lesser extent Germany, are attempting to assert their domination over the European Union. Since they cannot defeat the United States militarily or economically, they engineered a diplomatic trap. They convinced Colin Powell that an additional U.N. resolution was required to authorize force against Iraq. They conveniently ignored the authorization of force implicit in Security Council resolution 1441. (A resolution that France voted for in the fall of 2002.)

Secondly, I believe France and Germany and every other western government knows quite well that Iraq possesses chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. These governments know that there is a clear link between radical Islamic terrorist groups and Iraq. However, I believe the Paris and Berlin appeasement crowd seek to curry favor with al Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah and rest, and thus avoid a September 11 style attack on their soil.

Finally, economic motivations are not enough to explain the Franco/German attack on America. What they fail to understand is that George W. Bush is, at his core, a simple, straightforward man who says what he means and means what he says. The axis of weasels joined the axis of evil in attacking America. Both groups are going to lose, because America has joined the fight and these cowards (whether they be in Baghdad, Paris or Berlin) have gotten our attention.

America has won two world wars and the Cold War, and we will win this war. France and Germany need to decide whether they are with us or against us. God help them if they choose wrong, because America (once aroused) is a fearsome enemy.