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The shock over the terrorist attacks in France in 2015 and 2016 has triggered a turning-point in both France’s domestic and international policies, and more specifically in its engagement in the fight against jihadist terrorism. Yet deeper trends in French foreign and security policy frame its recent initiatives on the international stage, accompanying President François Hollande’s diplomatic activism and France’s strategic priorities in the European neighborhoods and at the global level. The redefinition of U.S. global leadership, the numerous security challenges in Europe and the European neighborhoods, and the emergence of new state and non-state security actors at the global level are all challenges for France’s foreign policy, and France’s focus on fighting terrorism raises a certain number a issues for transatlantic relations. What are the implications of shifts in the strategic environment for France’s diplomatic and military actions? What can be the French role in the redefinition of the transatlantic security partnership? What are the interests behind current French strategic priorities, and can we expect a change after the 2017 presidential elections? What propositions are made by the different candidates and political parties in terms of foreign policy, and how domestic politics will influence the French position on the global stage?

 

Dr. Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer is a senior transatlantic fellow and serves as the director of the Paris office of The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF). An accomplished expert on U.S. foreign policy, transatlantic relations and international security, she has held several positions in government, academia and international organizations, and is the author of many publications on these issues. She leads GMF’s Transatlantic Security Program and GMF’s Transatlantic Strategy Group on the Future of U.S. Global Leadership. From 2009-11, she served as special advisor for U.S. foreign policy and transatlantic relations at the Policy Planning of the French Foreign Affairs Ministry. From 2010-13, she was an advisor to USEUCOM Commander and SACEUR, Admiral James Stavridis, as part of the Next Generation Advisory Panel. From 2006-09, she served as a consultant for the French Defense Ministry and contributed to several high-level working groups on U.S. foreign policy, transatlantic defense cooperation and post-conflict reconstruction. She is an associate professor at Sciences Po Paris and co-editor of the Paris-based journal Politique Américaine, the focus of which is the United States, U.S. foreign policy, and transatlantic relations. She holds a Ph.D. in political science (Sciences Po Paris) and is the author of the book Hamlet en Irak (CNRS éditions, 2007).

 

Martin Michelot is the head of research at the EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy in Prague, and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Paris office of The German Marshall Fund of the United States. Michelot specializes in transatlantic security and NATO policy with a particular focus on regional security cooperation mechanisms in Europe, and French foreign policy. Michelot leads Europeum’s foreign policy programming in Central Europe, with a focus on security policy, immigration issues and regional cooperation. Michelot also manages the high-level convening program Transatlantic Security and Future of NATO program for GMF, where he has over 4 years of experience in event management and research on transatlantic security cooperation issues. He is a graduate of Sciences Po Lyon, where he studied international relations. His previous experiences include the Brookings Institution, where he served as a research assistant, and the French National Assembly, as parliamentary assistant. Michelot is a regular contributor to various news outlets on the topics of European defense policy and transatlantic relations. Michelot regularly teaches seminars at Sciences Po Lyon, Sciences Po Reims, the Ecole Centrale, and Charles University. He was selected by the Atlantic Council as one of the 15 Emerging Leaders tasked with writing a report before the NATO 2014 Wales Summit.

 

Dr. Chris Chivvis is an associate director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center and a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation. He specializes in national security issues in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, including NATO, military interventions, counter-terrorism, and deterrence. He is also an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The author of three scholarly books and several monographs and articles on U.S. foreign and security policy, Chivvis has worked on Eurasian security and NATO-Russia issues in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. He has also held research positions at the French Institute for International Relations (Ifri) in Paris and at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) in Berlin, and taught graduate courses at Johns Hopkins University, New York University, and Sciences Po in Paris. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, The National Interest, Survival, The Washington Quarterly, The Christian Science Monitor, CNN.com, and other leading publications. Chivvis received his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins, SAIS.

 

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