[War] France: An Intervention

[Dan Garcia]

"France:  An Intervention"
President Pierre Legrand, French Republic
August 4th, 2014


When the knock on the door came, Legrand had been pacing slowly, collecting his thoughts alone in his office.  Yesterday the Romanian President had announced her country's intention to basically withdraw from world affairs.  The price of Romanian debts and equities had collapsed immediately.  More to the point, Romania had pledged to withdraw from several institutions close to the heart of France, including the European Union and the Francophonie.

There had been debate among the French government on how to respond.  In the end, Legrand had cut the arguments short.  He had asked the Romanian ambassador to stop by before departing, and now he was here.

After the requisite pleasantries had been performed and Legrand and the ambassador were sitting across from each other, Legrand inhaled to say what he had to say.

"Mr. Ambassador, I don't think I need to say that your President's announcement yesterday has caused not a little uproar abroad," Legrand started.  The ambassador made to respond, but Legrand held up his hand.

"Now, it is the sovereign right of a nation to make choices regarding how it acts in the international arena, and its membership in international organizations is largely a matter for it to decide for itself.  Moreover, right now is a difficult time in international relations, with wars and cloak and dagger scheming abounding.

"However, I would like to convey to your government my government's, my country's, and indeed my own deep concern over your nation's decision.  It is likely to cause your nation much harm, even without the retaliation already underway in some quarters.

"Firstly, I would point out that isolationism hardly ever works out the way its proponents would hope.  To pick a somewhat, and yet not tremendously, extreme example the United States found in the first half of the last century that despite its best efforts it could not avoid being drawn into conflicts.  While I do not think that Romania has feet quite as large to be stepped on, you should not think that you can avoid all conflicts.  There are some people in this world who would intrude into the affairs of other nations in the most rude and uninvited manners, and some of them are Presidents or Prime Ministers.  Being active in international affairs, having allies, does help protect a country from such dangers.

"Secondly, I expect that your government is underestimating the economic consequences of its decision.  Some of the more obvious consequences are already manifesting themselves, such as a collapse in the value of Romanian debt instruments and securities.  This, in turn, will lead to exchange difficulties, perhaps in the short term making currency exchange very difficult if not impractical.  This in turn will interfere with normal trade relations, and exports are important to the Romanian economy.

"The rest of the world can and will move on, after some issues.  But it will be much harder for Romania to escape significant economic harm which will lower the standard of living of its people.  I do not know the answer to these questions, but does Romania have much in the way of production of medicine and medical equipment to keep healthcare standards up?  Does Romania produce many motor and other mechanical parts?  How about clothing?  What about oil and gas?  Issues exchanging your currency brought on by Romania's effective default could interrupt imports for all these goods and more.  The material consequences of your government's decision could be catastrophic.

"Thirdly, as to the closure of embassies and consulates, I would point out that in addition to their functions as lines of communication between governments, they provide important services to international travelers.  If, say, Romanian citizen visiting France, or vice versa, looses their passport or becomes ill, their embassy or consulate is an important resource, point of contact, and source of assistance.  By closing your facilities abroad, and the international community's facilities in Romania, travel in Romania or of Romanians abroad will become much more difficult.  Your government has expressed a willingness for such legal travel to continue, but without the infrastructure provided by embassies and consulates this will become more difficult, and such travel will be discouraged.

"I would also point out that embassies and consulates, and indeed an international presence and allies, are indispensable in case of emergencies in assisting citizens of a nation involved.  This is not limited to political events, such as Romanian citizens finding themselves suddenly trapped in a war zone or taken hostage by hostile regimes or groups.  This indispensable quality also arises in the case of natural disasters in which Romanian citizens might find themselves involved.

"I will not deny that France has interests of its own involved here.  As a major supporter of the European Union, we are loathe to see any nation leave.  After all, it might encourage others to follow.  My government believes that the European Union, as well as NATO, the UN, and the Francophonie, provide significant benefits to their members, and by Romania's involvement in these institutions the other members benefit in turn.

"I understand that your government is tired of the actions of many of the world's powers.  I do not exempt France from that statement.  We can, at times and even often, be quite unbearable, catching up smaller nations in our machinations.  It speaks well of your President that she sees this and dislikes it.  But I can't say that disengagement is a good answer.  It creates problems all its own and does not truly address the issues which have led to this decision in the first place.

"I ask your government to reconsider this choice, for all the reasons I have stated and for all the other reasons which have not been given an airing here.  France will not seize Romanian assets for the moment, and will not retaliate despite the calls for it which will inevitably arise.

"I wish I could say that France has always been the friend of Romania and would not lead her wrong, though I fear history would provide examples otherwise.  I do believe the peoples of France and Romania have much in common and that there will be no little sadness at the current situation.

"I have nothing else to say.  I hope you will convey my government's feelings and hopes to your government," Legrand finished.


ACTIONS:

1)  Try to persuade Romania not to isolate itself.  At the very least, France hopes Romania will moderate its position somewhat.

2)  The gist of this conversation will be disclosed to the press.

3)  France will not retaliate against Romania.  (At least for the moment.)