Editing Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (section)

====Africa====
Giscard continued de Gaulle's [[Françafrique|African policy]], and sought to maintain good relations with Middle East Muslim countries so that they would continue delivering oil to France.<ref>{{cite web |last=Girardet |first=Edward |title=Giscard's pro-Arab tilt splits French Jewish community |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1980/0407/040744.html |work=The Christian Science Monitor |date=7 April 1980 |access-date=10 August 2023}}</ref> Senegal, Ivory Coast, Gabon, and Cameroon were the largest and most reliable African allies, and received most of the investments.<ref> Frears, John R., ''France in the Giscard Presidency'' (1981) pp. 109–127.</ref> In 1977, in [[Opération Lamantin]], he ordered fighter jets to deploy in [[Mauritania]] and suppress the [[Polisario Front|Polisario]] guerrillas fighting against the Mauritanian government.<ref name=NYT1979>{{cite web |title=France Reinforces Garrison in Senegal |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/11/03/archives/france-reinforces-garrison-in-senegal-effort-intended-to-help-free.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=3 November 1977}}</ref>

The most important advisor on African affairs during the Giscard era was [[René Journiac]], successor of [[Jacques Foccart]] at the Secretariat for African and Malagasy Affairs, which was renamed to the "{{ill|African Department|fr|Cellule africaine de l'Élysée}}" (''Cellule africaine''). Journiac largely continued Foccart's approach of maintaining French influence in its [[French colonial empire|former colonies]] through a web of personal relationships with African [[Political strongman|strongmen]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=de La Guérivière |first=Jean |title=La mort de M. René Journiac |website=[[Le Monde]] |date=8 February 1980 |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1980/02/08/la-mort-de-m-rene-journiac_2813720_1819218.html |access-date=14 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Servenay |first=David |date=2023 |editor-last1=Borrel |editor-first1=Thomas |editor-last2=Boukari-Yabara |editor-first2=Amzat |editor-last3=Collombat |editor-first3=Benoît |editor-last4=Deltombe |editor-first4=Thomas |title=Une histoire de la Françafrique: L'empire qui ne veut pas mourir |publisher=[[Éditions du Seuil|Seuil]] |pages=504-505 |chapter=Foccart, Marenches, Journiac : trois « crocodiles » dans le marigot du renseignement franco-africain |isbn=9782757897751}}</ref> In 1977, documents forgotten by the [[mercenary]] [[Bob Denard]] during [[1977 Benin coup attempt|a coup attempt]] in [[Benin]] suggested that Denard's group had received support from official channels, namely through Journiac.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bat |first=Jean-Pierre |date=2016 |title=Le secteur N (Afrique) et la fin de la Guerre froide |url=https://shs-cairn-info.acces.bibl.ulaval.ca/revue-relations-internationales-2016-1-page-43 |journal=Relations internationales |volume=165 |issue=1 |pages=43-56 |doi=10.3917/ri.165.0043 |access-date=14 February 2025}}</ref>

Most controversial was Giscard's involvement with the regime of [[Jean-Bédel Bokassa]] in the [[Central African Empire|Central African Republic]].<ref name=RFI>{{cite web|url=https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20201203-mixed-memories-of-val%C3%A9ry-giscard-d-estaing-france-s-monsieur-afrique|title=Mixed memories of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, France's 'Monsieur Afrique'|date=3 December 2020 |publisher=Radio France Internationale|access-date=3 December 2020}}</ref> Giscard was initially a friend of Bokassa, and supplied the regime.<ref name=RFI/> The growing unpopularity of that government led Giscard to begin distancing himself from Bokassa.<ref name=RFI/> In 1979's [[Operation Caban]], French troops helped drive Bokassa out of power and restore former president [[David Dacko]] to power.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bradshaw |first1=Richard |last2=Fandos-Rius |first2=Juan |title=Historical Dictionary of the Central African Republic |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aSxIDAAAQBAJ&q=Giscard++Bokassa+David+Dacko&pg=PA129 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |date=27 May 2016 |isbn=978-0-8108-7992-8}}</ref> This action was also controversial, particularly given that Dacko was Bokassa's cousin and had appointed Bokassa as head of the military; and unrest continued in the Central African Republic, leading to [[1981 Central African Republic coup d'état|Dacko being overthrown in another coup in 1981]].<ref name=RFI/><ref name=BBCobit/>

The [[Diamonds Affair]], known in France as ''l'affaire des diamants'', was a major political scandal in the [[French Fifth Republic|Fifth Republic]]. In 1973, while [[Ministry of Economics and Finance (France)|Minister of Finance]], Giscard d'Estaing was given a number of diamonds by Bokassa. The affair was unveiled by the satirical newspaper ''[[Le Canard Enchaîné]]'' on 10 October 1979, towards the end of Giscard's presidency.

In order to defend himself, Giscard d'Estaing claimed to have sold the diamonds and donated the proceeds to the [[Central African Red Cross Society|Central African Red Cross]]. He expected CARC authorities to confirm the story. However, the head of the local Red Cross society, [[Jeanne-Marie Ruth-Rolland]], publicly denied the French claims. Ruth-Rolland was quickly dismissed from her post in what she described as a ''"coup de force"'' by Dacko.<ref name="Dictionary2">{{cite book |last1=Bradshaw |first1=Richard |last2=Fandos-Rius |first2=Juan |title=Historical Dictionary of the Central African Republic |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |location=Lanham, MD |edition=new |date=2016 |pages=550–551 |isbn=978-0-8108-7991-1}}</ref> The saga contributed to Giscard losing his [[1981 French presidential election|1981 reelection bid]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The diamond scandal that helped bring down France's Giscard |url=https://news.yahoo.com/diamond-scandal-helped-bring-down-162628468.html |publisher=Yahoo! News}}</ref>