French President Jacques Chirac used a two-day official visit to London in November 2004 to argue that the European Union's growing defense capabilities were designed to complement the Atlantic alliance, not compete with the United States.
Speaking to a London audience, Chirac said the aim of developing a credible European defense capacity was to give the continent the ability to act on its own, in coordination with NATO, or from within it. He rejected the characterization that the effort was aimed at Washington.
Chirac noted that Europe already held the world's second-largest combined military budget and called for rationalizing that spending by pooling national forces, phasing out duplication, and expanding cross-border cooperation programs.
France had already launched joint defense initiatives with Germany and other EU partners, he said, adding that deeper cooperation with Britain remained within reach. Chirac met with Prime Minister Tony Blair earlier that day. The visit was timed to mark the hundredth anniversary of the Entente Cordiale, the accord that drew the two nations together after centuries of rivalry.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in November 2004, in its own words.