France`s pro-Arab stance was a given in the days of the General perhaps, but although Sarkozy`s official policies have been the first official statement of a turnabout, re-alignment in the French establishment goes at least 10 years back: it is career-affecting to openly display anti-zionist opinions in France nowadays, unless your economic livelihood relies on the embattled and dwindling marxist fringe ecosystem.
Certainly, the French people frustrated reaction to the hickups of Muslim integration have spurred an anti-Arab backlash, and rants that used to be voiced only at the Café du Commerce are now fodder for state propaganda. Israel has been quite shrewd exploiting the ignorance and arrogance of the French, and in a way I admire this. Israelis are smart people. |
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