In a Le Monde op-ed, Bruno Retailleau, president of Les Républicains, laments the crumbling post-1945 international order amid recent crises in Venezuela, Iran, and Greenland. He criticizes France's passive and contradictory response to Nicolás Maduro's arrest and urges a complete overhaul of domestic and foreign policies over the past fifty years.
The early days of 2026 have featured events challenging notions of sovereignty, according to Bruno Retailleau. In Venezuela, France has been a passive and contradictory spectator to Nicolás Maduro's arrest, condemning U.S. interference while tolerating that from narco-states poisoning European societies. Retailleau notes that Maduro lacked diplomatic immunity, unrecognized internationally after the 2018 and 2024 election frauds, and faced an arrest warrant for state-sponsored narcotrafficking, corruption, and organized crime.
The Les Républicains leader invokes the Gaullist legacy, defining sovereignty as 'the people exercising their sovereignty without hindrances,' tied to democracy and a high regard for humanity. He argues that international law should not shield dictators from their people but foster cooperation among sovereign states. These crises highlight the inadequacy of current national, European, and international legal frameworks in a brutal world.
Retailleau urges France to reclaim a free, coherent, and uncompromising voice on the global stage, questioning renouncements over the past fifty years. The Venezuelan, Iranian, and Greenland episodes expose French weaknesses and contradictions, confronting the nation with its destiny and values.
