Between Ideology and Europe: The French Socialists and the EMS Crisis, 1981–1983

Abstract

This paper examines the policy turnaround of the French Socialists during the exchange rate crisis between 1981 and 1983 in terms of an ideational shift. This paper analyzes the European idea of the French Socialists before, during and after the EMS crisis. The French Socialists came to power with the socialist concept of European integration. However, their traditional European idea could not be applied in dealing with the actual exchange rate crisis. Instead, Mitterrand and the Socialists rediscovered the constraints from Europe integration and Franco-German relations, which forced the Socialists to redefine their European posture. Their ambivalent initial position toward the EMS became clearly pro-European after the exchange rate crisis.