Increasingly Divided Loyalties

Mitterrand's Communist partners side with Moscow on missiles

It has never been easy to serve two masters, but that has not stopped France's Communist Party from trying. As junior members of the ruling leftist alliance, French Communists have dutifully supported Socialist President Franc,ois Mitterrand. At the same time, they have remained as faithful as possible to the Soviet Union. But because Moscow is demanding that France's 98 nuclear weapons be counted in the U.S.-Soviet negotiations in Geneva on the limitation of nuclear weapons in Europe, France's Communists have found their loyalties increasingly divided.

In a speech to party activists in Paris last week, French Communist Leader Georges Marchais openly challenged the Mitterrand government's position that France's force de frappe is simply not up for negotiation. "The French nuclear force cannot fail to be taken into consideration," Marchais argued. "How can we believe it is possible to say to the Americans, 'In case of mishap you can depend on us,' and then say to the Soviets, 'You do not have the right to count us, neither on one side or the other'?"

Marchais's challenge came at an awkward moment for Mitterrand, who had traveled to a forest retreat in Alsace to discuss the Geneva negotiations with West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. The French President refused to be drawn further into the debate, noting only that he and Kohl had "breathed the fresh air; looked at the trees, the flowers and the sky; and talked a lot." But there was no getting around the fact that the missile disagreement was putting strains on the leftist coalition.

The Marchais speech seemed to mark a shift in the French Communist position on missiles in Europe. Until now, the Communists have endorsed Mitterrand's view that NATO should deploy new U.S. intermediate-range nuclear missiles in Europe to counter the arsenal of Soviet SS-20 missiles targeted on Western Europe if the U.S. and the Soviets do not reach an agreement in Geneva by the end of this year. Indeed, after Mitterrand spoke out strongly in favor of the NATO position last January in a speech to the West German Bundestag, Marchais expressed his "total accord," while stressing the importance of continued negotiations.

The French Communists have since moved closer to Moscow on the missile issue. During a visit to the Kremlin two weeks ago, Marchais joined Soviet President Yuri Andropov in calling for "the balanced reduction of nuclear forces." They added the proviso that all missiles systems be "taken into consideration," a clear reference to Moscow's demand that France's independent nuclear arsenal be counted in Geneva. The Soviets, it appears, had successfully enlisted Marchais in their propaganda offensive.

After Marchais's visit to the Kremlin, Mitterrand stuck to his view that the French nuclear force should not be included in the Geneva talks because its purpose is to defend France, not the Alliance. Said the French President: "Everything that touches our national independence and territorial defense is decided neither in Moscow nor in Washington nor in Geneva. It is decided in Paris and by me."

Despite the harsh tone, there are no signs that the Socialists and the Communists are moving toward an open break. However uncomfortable it may sometimes be for them, the Communists, who hold four ministerial portfolios, grudgingly support Mitterrand's economic austerity plan and recent incentives for private enterprise. They insist that they will remain in the government, come what may. Said Marchais: "Those who think that we are preparing to leave the government because of all this are entertaining false illusions.'' This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.