Marc Pierini, a former European Union career diplomat, wrote in a commentary for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace that France also needs a "fresh start" in the Arab world.
Mr. Pierini blames EU treaty law for giving the U.K., France and Germany the power to stifle a common foreign policy and says the separation of aid and humanitarian assistance from the EU's diplomatic decision-making has undermined some of the soft power it can otherwise project.