France is currently undergoing a period of profound instability – cultural, economic and strategic.
What is unfolding before our eyes is not merely a succession of cyclical crises, but a structural weakening of the country, the consequences of which are being felt widely at home, but also on the international stage.
Culturally speaking, first and foremost, France seems to have lost confidence in itself.
Yet, as the heir to a two-thousand-year history, a universal language and a renowned intellectual tradition, it now appears hesitant, fragmented, distorted, and at times even ashamed of who it is. Shared values are fading, public debate is becoming impoverished, and cultural transmission—despite its essential nature—is gradually unravelling; even our language is deteriorating.
Economically, the signs are just as worrying.
Deindustrialisation, which began several decades ago, has only accelerated. The burden of public debt has reached unprecedented levels, our best companies have been sold off to the United States, competitiveness is eroding, and a growing proportion of the population expresses a sense of grave social insecurity. Behind the reassuring rhetoric, the reality is that of a country struggling to produce, to export and to look to the future with confidence.
But it is perhaps on the geopolitical stage that France’s decline is most visible.
In the Middle East, a region where France historically wielded significant diplomatic and cultural influence, its role has been drastically reduced. Where it was once listened to and respected, it now appears marginalised, often merely following the lead of others, and rarely decisive.
This decline is not solely the result of external power dynamics. It also stems from political choices, a lack of strategic vision and a growing difficulty in defending clearly defined national interests. By constantly trying to please all parties and demonstrating a lack of strategy, France sometimes gives the impression that it no longer has any real influence over events.
Moreover, its alignment with the United States – preferably with the Democrats – is causing it to lose its independence at an ever-increasing rate.
Thus a worrying reality is taking shape: that of a country that no longer believes in itself, which is becoming impoverished, whose moral values are disappearing, which is gradually fading from the international stage and which is progressively losing allies, friends and markets.
The question is no longer whether France is in crisis, but how long the French people will continue to put up with what is being done to them.
