III.

Return to Power

In May 1958 France was confronted with a threat of civil war over the question of independence for Algeria. De Gaulle was recalled to serve as premier. The National Assembly granted him power to rule by decree for six months and to supervise the drafting of a new constitution. The new charter, conferring vastly increased powers on the executive branch, was overwhelmingly approved by the French voters. The following December de Gaulle was elected president of the newly created Fifth Republic. He took office on January 8, 1959.

During his first term de Gaulle instituted economic, industrial, and governmental reforms, negotiated Algerian independence, and led France into the European Economic Community. He also championed a unilateral nuclear-weapons program for France, which exploded an atomic weapon in 1960. He strengthened ties with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and with Communist China and attempted to extend French influence in Asia and Latin America, while displaying resentment against the United States. However, he continued to support the United States in the fundamentals of its Cold War rivalry with the USSR.