In 1999, as America prepared to enter the new century, French
leaders decried its rising status as a "hyperpower". A
hyperpower, explained then French foreign minister Hubert
Védrine, is one that is so dominant in all spheres, that there
is no counterbalance. For Védrine and his colleagues that was a
problem. As the New York Times reported in May 1999, "The
remarks were in line with recent attempts by President Jacques
Chirac, Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and Mr Védrine to draw
attention to what France now calls American unilateralism, and
to attract other countries to the idea of counteracting it
through French-led multilateral initiatives." Thanks to
Védrine's successor, Dominique de Villepin, and his efforts on
behalf of President Chirac to shield Saddam Hussein from
American unilateralism in the run-up to the 2003 Iraq War,
French anti-Americanism became legendary, earning both fame and
scorn in the early days of George W. Bush's presidency.
Historians will debate, no doubt, whether America ever was a hyp