Chirac's Foreign Affairs

By ADAM SMITH Sunday, Feb. 16, 2003

The then French Prime Minister oversees a deal to build the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq — dubbed Ochirac in honor of his close involvement in negotiations.

June 1995
After 18 years as mayor of Paris, newly elected President Chirac tunes up France's own force de frappe by resuming nuclear tests in the South Pacific. After fierce condemnation at home and abroad, Chirac terminates the testing ahead of schedule.

June 1995
Putting France at the forefront of efforts to halt Serb aggression, Chirac launches the Franco-British Rapid Reaction Force to help break up the military and diplomatic logjam in Bosnia.

December 1995
In a surprise move, Chirac (a.k.a. "Chameleon Bonaparte") brings France back into the NATO military fold, 30 years after de Gaulle withdrew from the alliance's integrated command.

1999
French planes make up the second-largest force in NATO's bombing campaign begun in March over Kosovo, with French soldiers joining British and German troops in June as the advance guard of the NATO-led peacekeeping force, KFOR.

September 2001
Chirac glad-hands New York fire fighters as the first world leader to visit President Bush after Sept. 11, and calls for a united front against global terrorism.