ABSTRACT
This chapter offers greater scrutiny of the conceptual and empirical ambiguity that makes France appear both a promoter of the Europeanisation of defence policy and a loyal protagonist of independent state action. It is argued that conceptualising the integration of defence as being driven by France’s politico-strategic ambitions is misleading. There are two significant aspects to this argument. First, France’s contemporary perception of Europeanisation of defence has been too easily equated with the country’s historical position on political integration. Second, this perception has been predominantly characterised by the country’s defence industry interests, which inevitably reduces France’s ambition to seek political integration in the field. The focus on these issues allows for more adequate conclusions on the European Union’s defence policy.
