Hollande may put Franco-Iranian ties on 'the proper path': expert

TEHRAN, May 9 (MNA) – South Alabama University professor Nader Entessar says French president-elect Francois Hollande may help put the relations between Paris and Tehran “on the proper path”. “Having Sarkozy's bombastic personality out of the picture may once again help putting Franco-Iranian relations on the proper path,” Entessar told the Mehr News Agency. Following is the text of the interview: Q: What is your prediction for how French foreign policy in the Middle East will change under a socialist president? A: The victory of Francois Hollande in the recent French presidential election is important in several respects. It was the first time in nearly two decades that a Socialist candidate was able to defeat a conservative candidate in France's presidential election. Francois Mitterrand, who left office in 1995, was the last Socialist president of France. Perhaps the most significant implication of Hollande's victory will be felt in Europe, especially in the eurozone countries. Throughout the presidential campaign, Hollande criticized Sarkozy's economic austerity measures and blamed Sarkozy for the economic woes that France has been experiencing in recent months. I believe that the most significant contrast between Sarkozy and Hollande administration's will be seen in both domestic and foreign economic policies of France. Also, Sarkozy had become a polarizing and unpopular figure in France. Sarkozy's abrasive personality, his ostentatious life style, and his Napoleonic complex all worked against him. During the first round of France's presidential election, Marine Le Pen, the candidate of the far-right, anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim National Front, received over 18 percent of the votes cast. After the first round, Sarkozy, hoping to attract support of the National Front's supporters, turned increasingly to the right. Although Sarkozy most likely attracted many National Front voters to his campaign in the second round of the presidential election, he still could not defeat Hollande. With respect to France's foreign policy towards Iran and its nuclear program, Hollande's posture is not very different from that of Sarkozy. Like Sarkozy, Hollande has on numerous occasions stated that he will oppose the development of an Iranian nuclear bomb; something that Iran itself has never promoted. However, Sarkozy's close relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's hard-line Prime Minister, had turned him into a carbon-copy of Netanyahu when it came to challenging Iran. Having Sarkozy's bombastic personality out of the picture may once again help putting Franco-Iranian relations on the proper path. With respect to France's foreign policy in the broader Middle East, Hollande's public statements indicate that there will be many similarities between the new French administration and the outgoing Sarkozy regime in some areas. For example, Hollande, like Sarkozy, has been a supporter of the "peace process" in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and has favored a two-state solution in Palestine while expressing strong support for "Israeli security" a linchpin of any solution to this conflict. However, it remains to be seen if Hollande will view Israel's "national interest" as being closely tied to that of France. Also, Hollande has expressed support for a possible military intervention in Syria if it is conducted under the UN auspices. In general, Hollande has not yet announced specific foreign policy measures in the Middle East and has preferred to remain vague as much as possible with respect to the details of his foreign policy. However, during the presidential campaign, Hollande did mention that he would withdraw all French NATO troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2012. With respect to France's foreign policy towards Turkey, we may experience some softening of the French position under the Hollande administration. During his presidency, Sarkozy had developed near contempt for Turkey and became one of the staunchest opponents of Turkey's potential membership in the EU. Hollande has also opposed Turkish EU membership for now, but he has not ruled out future negotiations over this matter sometime in the future. Nader Entessar is professor of the University of South Alabama. He is the author of Kurdish Ethnonationalism (1992) and the co-editor of Reconstruction and Regional Diplomacy in the Persian Gulf (Routledge, 1992) and Iran and the Arab world. (By Javad Heirannia)