Transforming development asymmetries into an asset, so as to reduce ideological asymmetries between Western and Eastern Europe: the case of French détente with Romania

French détente tried to turn development asymmetries with Romania into a tool, so as to reduce the systemic asymmetry – political, economic and ideological – between the Western and Eastern Blocs. Indeed, France and Romania got more and more involved in the détente, in the process of regionalization which began at the scale of the whole Europe during the 1970s, and in the beginnings of the globalization. However, the consequences were dissimilar because of the radical differences between their respective political and economic organizations. Paradoxically, the initial success of that policy led eventually to diplomatic difficulties between the two countries.