Articles hors Ifri - France's Russia Policy: Balancing Interests and Values The Washington Quaterly, Spring 2007

France's Russia policy is at the end of an arc that began in 1998. At that time, France and Germany paired with Russia diplomatically in what is known as the Yekaterinburg Triangle, named after the Russian city where it was initially formed, to accommodate Russia's unique position in Europe and sustain its domestic transformation. The French-German alliance ambitiously hoped to stabilize "Grand Europe" with Russia while preparing for the enlargement of NATO and the European Union toward Russia's borders.