Central African Republic–France relations are foreign relations between the
Central African Republic (CAR) and
France. Both nations are members of the
Francophonie
Francophonie is the quality of speaking French. The term designates the ensemble of people, organisations and governments that share the use of French on a daily basis and as administrative language, teaching language or chosen language. The ...
and the
United Nations.
History
French Colonialism

During the
Partition of Africa in the 1880s,
Belgium, the
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
and France each competed against each other in order to control territory north of the
Ubangi River. In 1903, France named its new colony '
Ubangi-Shari' and in 1910, France incorporated the territory along with four other colonies (
French Congo,
Gabon,
Chad
Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...
and
French Cameroon) into one colonial federation known as the
French Equatorial Africa.
[Encyclopedia Britannica: Central African Republic - The Colonial Era]
/ref> Initially, the French government leased large parts of land for European companies and forced the local population to gather wild rubber, hunt for ivory and animal skins, and work on plantations. Due to forced exploitation by the French colonial empire
The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French Colonial Empire", that exist ...
, Central African locals began to rebel in the early 20th century. This led to the Kongo-Wara rebellion (1928-1931). The rebellion was soon suppressed by the French government.
During World War II, Central African soldiers formed part of the grand French colonial army ( Troupes coloniales) and fought for Free France and partook in the Liberation of Paris
The liberation of Paris (french: Libération de Paris) was a military battle that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been occupied by Nazi Germ ...
. In October 1940, General Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...
arrived to Bangui to visit Governor Pierre Marie de Saint-Mart and review the troops.
Independence
Soon after the second World War, France adopted a new constitution in 1946 and granted full French citizenship to residents of the Ubangi-Shari and allowed for the establishment of local assemblies within the new French Union. In December 1958, former Catholic Priest Barthélemy Boganda became head of government of the Ubangi-Shari Territory. In March 1959, Boganda's was killed when his airplane exploded and he was replaced by his cousin, David Dacko. On 13 August 1960, Ubangi-Shari obtained its independence from France and changed its name to the Central African Republic (CAR) and David Dacko became the country's first President.
Post Independence
20th century
In December 1965, a coup d'état was launched against President Dacko known as the Saint-Sylvestre coup d'état (with the assistance of France) and Army Commander Jean-Bédel Bokassa declared himself President of CAR. In 1975, French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing attended the France-Africa Summit held in Bangui. President Giscard was known to visit the country several times and partook in hunting expeditions with Bokassa.[Jean-Bedel Bokassa, Self-Crowned Emperor Of the Central African Republic, Dies at 75](_blank)
/ref> In December 1976, President Bokassa declared himself Emperor of the Central African Republic and his coronation amounted to approx. $20 million USD, which was equivalent to the GDP of the nation for an entire year. The French government paid for the Emperors coronation. D
Due to widespread repression, human rights abuse and allegations of cannibalism in CAR by Emperor Bokassa, France removed Bokassa from power known as ''Operation Barracuda'' when the Emperor was on an official trip in Libya. David Dacko was re-instated as President of CAR and Bokassa was later offered asylum in France. In October 1979, French Newspaper, Le Canard enchaîné ran a piece stating that President Giscard had accepted two diamonds while Minister of Finance in 1973 by Bokassa. The scandal became known as the Diamonds Affair
The diamonds affair, known in France as "l'affaire des diamants", was a major political scandal in the 5th French Republic. In 1973, the Minister of Finance, future president Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, was offered two diamonds from the President o ...
(''Affaire des diamants'').
For the next 19 years, France would intervene in Central African politics by supporting and removing Central African Presidents. In 1997, Central African President Ange-Félix Patassé negotiated the Bangui Agreements to bring an end to the 1990s conflict between government and rebel forces. As a result of the agreements, France closed its military base in Bouar in 1998.
21st century
In March 2009, French troops were deployed to Bangui after reports that rebels were taking over the capital to remove President François Bozizé
François Bozizé Yangouvonda (born 14 October 1946) is a Central African politician who was President of the Central African Republic from 2003 to 2013.
Bozizé rose to become a high-ranking army officer in the 1970s, under the rule of Jean-B� ...
from power. In 2012, civil war erupted in the Central African Republic when mostly Muslim rebels known as Séléka removed President Bozizé from power in 2013, and installed Michel Djotodia as President. After the removal of Bozizé, a mainly Christian rebel group known as Anti-balaka rebelled against the government and Muslim nationals in the country. Séléka and government forces fought against Anti-balaka and targeted Christian nationals in the country. As a result of the religious and ethnic conflict in CAR, France returned to CAR to stop the bloodshed by deploying 1,000 troops and armored vehicles into the country to maintain peace known as Operation Sangaris
Operation Sangaris was a military intervention of the French military in the Central African Republic, from late 2013 till 2016. It was the seventh French military intervention there since the independence of the country in 1960. On 30 October 20 ...
. French President François Hollande
François Gérard Georges Nicolas Hollande (; born 12 August 1954) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2012 to 2017. He previously was First Secretary of the Socialist Party (PS) from 1997 to 2008, Mayor of Tulle from ...
visited French troops in CAR in December 2013. The troops remained in CAR until 2016. President Hollande returned to CAR in May 2016 to oversee the removal of French troops from the country which concluded in October 2016 and met with newly-elected President Faustin-Archange Touadéra.
Aid
In 2014, France contributed €170 million Euros in aid to CAR. This aid money paid for civilian assistance in addition to military expenditure, humanitarian assistance, support of the electoral process, support for the end of the crisis and democratic governance in the country. At the donors' conference in Brussels on 17 November 2016, France announced €85 million in aid over three years, including €15 million for the "Bêkou" fund.
Trade
In 2016, trade between the Central African Republic and France totalled $50 million USD. French multi-national companies such as Air France and Orange S.A. operate in CAR.
Resident diplomatic missions
* Central African Republic has an embassy in Paris
* France has an embassy in Bangui.Embassy of France in Bangui (in French)
/ref>
See also
* Françafrique
* Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Central African Republic-France relations
France
Central African Republic