Editing Foreign relations of France (section)

===François Hollande===
[[File:Francois Hollande and Vladimir Putin, Moscow 6 dec 2014 - 01.jpg|thumb|[[François Hollande]] and [[Vladimir Putin]] in December 2014]]
Socialist [[François Hollande]] won election in 2012 as president.<ref>Brinton Rowdybush, and Patrick Chamorel, "Aspirations and reality: French foreign policy and the 2012 elections." ''The Washington Quarterly'' (2012) 35#1 pp: 163–177.</ref> He adopted a generally hawkish foreign-policy, in close collaboration with Germany in regard to opposing Russian moves against Ukraine, and in sending the military to fight radical Islamists in Africa.<ref>Tony Chafer, "Hollande and Africa Policy." ''Modern & Contemporary France'' (2014) 22#4 pp: 513–531.</ref> He took a hard line with regard to the Greek debt crisis.<ref>Kenneth R. Weinstein, "Hollande the hawk?." ''World Affairs'' 177.1 (2014): 87–96.</ref> François Hollande launched two military operations in Africa: [[Operation Serval]] in Mali (the French armed forces stopped an Islamist takeover of [[Bamako]], the nation's capital city); and [[Operation Sangaris]] (to restore peace there as tensions between different religious communities had turned into a violent conflict). France was also the first European nation to join the United States in bombing the [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]]. Under President Hollande, France's stances on the civil war in Syria and Iran's nuclear program have been described as "[[hawkish]]".<ref>[https://www.economist.com/news/europe/21635009-france-has-emerged-americas-closest-european-ally-security-policy-cheese-eating-warriors Cheese-eating warriors], [[The Economist]]</ref>