ABSTRACT
The idea of a ‘French exception’ is frequently used to underline – and sometimes to explain – the existence of policies and norms that seem specific to France. Exceptionalism in foreign and defence policy issues has been both significant and highly visible in the past, in large part due to the legacy of Charles de Gaulle’s vision and practice. 2 Since Nicolas Sarkozy became the sixth president of the Fifth Republic in 2007 and took the decision that France would reintegrate into NATO’s military structures, some dimensions of the French exceptionalism in foreign policy are seen, by some, to have come to an end. 3 This, however, seems not to be the case with nuclear policy.
