France Stages Massive Bastille Day Parade
P A R I S, July 14 -- Standard-bearers from eight European countries were given pride of place at the head ofFrance’s traditional Bastille Day military parade today.
France has just taken over the rotating presidency of the European Union and is keen to promote the creation of a unified EU force to give the bloc more cohesive military clout.
Original plans to involve troops from all 15 EU nations in today’s military extravaganza were scrapped to prevent Austrian soldiers from marching through Paris.
France, which has led criticism of the entry of the far right into Austria’s government, was worried that the presence of Austrian troops in Paris might spark protests.
Instead, the mass parade was opened by flags and honor guards from Belgium, Britain, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain — eight allied states which are members of existing European military groupings.
Blowing Patriotic Smoke
As they proceeded up the Champs Elysees, fighter aircraft from seven EU nations dipped below the gray cloud cover and roared overhead in close formation, led by jets streaming red, white and blue smoke.
France is the only major Western power to hold military parades on the scale of the Bastille Day event. In all some 140 planes and helicopters, 3,800 soldiers and 320 vehicles took part in the annual celebration of the 1789 French revolution.
Later, France will stage a mammoth picnic covering the length and breadth of the country. Some 4 million people are expected to take part in the “Incroyable Pique-Nique,” despite forecasts of rain and cold.
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