In the wake of recent election results, they're starting to threaten to deport radical Muslims.

Heard today that it's feared that many of the ex-Iraqi regime elements may end up in France and be protected from the long arm of the "New order of terrorist hunters", Us. I would not be surprised.

France knows we won't bail them out of a system of their own devices. If they wind up with an internal terrorist problem, it'll be on them, not us or the E.U. and they know it. Chirac has lost all his kick backs, now he has no choice but to crack down.

*Yawn* All Frogistan ever does is threaten. Call me when they actually do something.

It goes against the grain (as a Brit) but...got to put a word in for the French on this one. They were warning us about radical imams and terror-connected Algerian asylum seekers years ago.

They hunted and deported a lot, we didn't, and with Abu Hamza and the Ricin gang, it very nearly bit us on the arse.

The French seem to like to play a carrot and stick game with their Muslims. Sometimes the "carrot" can tip over to political appeasement of "moderates", but they do have limits.
I think the atrocious French behavior over Iraq is not based on any great fear of their Muslims. Talking to ordinary French, they'd rather not have it as a source of tension, true. But they are also confident that if real civil disorder ever arose, the gendarmerie could contain it. By whatever means necessary.