ABSTRACT
During de Gaulle’s tenure as French President, France famously twice vetoed British applications to join the European Economic Community (EEC). The first veto, made during de Gaulle’s press conference of 14 January 1963 is certainly the more famous and spectacular of the two. De Gaulle, in his characteristically grandiloquent style, not only vetoed the British application but also rejected the American offer to set up a Multilateral Force (MLF), and by doing so effectively kick-started a more ambitious and independent foreign policy for France. The second veto of December 1967, while seemingly less spectacular and more cautious, was nonetheless also a very categorical no to the British.1
