Sister Republics - by David G Haglund (Hardcover)

About the Book

"David Haglund's Sister Republics tells the story of the behaviorally "special" relationship between the United States and its first ally, France. Historians and political scientists have characterized interactions between the two "sister republics" in the sphere of security and defense policy in radically contrasting ways: either the two comport themselves in a highly cooperative fashion as befitting their status as old allies and great friends, or they are bitter rivals, often revealing their alliance ties to be, at best dysfunctional, and at worst destructive. Haglund approaches this analytical tension differently, splitting the difference between the above polar positions. He makes two significant points. First, suboptimal cooperation represents the default position in the two countries' security and defense relationship, making them neither great friends nor great antagonists. Instead, their relationship is a reasonably adequate one, and while it could certainly stand improvement, it is unlikely to experience any amelioration. Second, "culture"-specifically "strategic culture"-can tell us a great deal regarding the origins and consequences of suboptimality in their cooperation and why "improvement" so often turns out to represent an elusive goal. While there is a vast scholarly corpus on the Franco-American relationship, Haglund is the first scholar to analyze the Franco-American special relationship through the prism of strategic culture. The usefulness and value of his study is its invocation of those cultural factors that have gone into endowing bilateral ties with their enduring quality of suboptimality. Haglund addresses in some detail the most relevant of the cultural sources of Franco-American suboptimal cooperation in security and defense relations. He concludes by asking why we should conceive the relationship essential, how one might theorize it through strategic culture, and whether things might have turned out differently between the two countries had different individual leaders been in power"--

Book Synopsis

David G. Haglund's Sister Republics tells the story of the unique relationship between the United States and its first ally, France. Historians and political scientists have characterized interactions between the two countries in the spheres of security and defense policy in radically different ways: either the two comport themselves in a highly cooperative fashion, befitting their status as old allies and steadfast friends, or they act as bitter rivals, revealing their alliance to be at best dysfunctional and at worst destructive. Haglund uses a fresh approach to reconcile these divergent positions, examining the Franco-American bond through the prism of strategic culture. In doing so, he reveals the cultural factors that have contributed to the suboptimal relationship between the two nations.

Review Quotes

"Ever since the time of Lafayette, France and America have been squabbling sisters who depend on each other but can't quite get along. David G. Haglund deftly draws on the concept of strategic culture to explain why they can't help pushing each other's most sensitive buttons."--Jack Snyder, author of From Voting to Violence: Democratization and Nationalist Conflict

"France and America, the two beacons of human rights and republican democracy, should naturally be the closest allies. Yet their relations are marred by cultural divergencies, the absence of a large French diaspora in the U.S., and clashes of individual leaders. Haglund's colorful exploration of all angles makes for a riveting read."--Beatrice Heuser, author of War: A Genealogy of Western Ideas and Practices

"Haglund delves into the concepts of strategic culture and identity to take the reader through an incredible journey across more than three centuries of French-American relations."--Luca Ratti, author of A Not-So-Special Relationship: The US, the UK, and German Unification, 1945-1990

"The United States and France are long-standing allies but also an odd couple. In Sister Republics, Haglund aptly utilizes the concept of strategic culture to provide a rich and elegantly written analysis of the deep-seated springs of that suboptimal yet special relationship."--Frédéric Heurtebize, author of Le Péril Rouge: Washington Face à L'Eurocommunisme

About the Author

David G. Haglund is professor of political studies at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada, and author of The US "Culture Wars" and the Anglo-American Special Relationship.