France sent 18,000 troops to the Gulf War (1991) and up to 4,000 to Afghanistan (they were there over a decade, the numbers fluctuated). They lost 90 men in Afghanistan. They did not send men to W's war in 2003, for they did not believe his justification. Turns out they were right.

This is what I thought. France did not send troops after 9/11

France sent troops to Afghanistan, the country which harbored the 9/11 terrorists. France did not send troops to W's Iraq fiasco based on Dick Cheney's and Don Rumsfeld's lies. France fulfilled its obligations under Article 5.

I’m not questioning whether they should have. The Cheney war on Iraq was just a money grab for oil and had nothing to do with protecting America.

"France did not send troops after 9/11" --- you. This is simply not true. France sent thousands of troops into Afghanistan and provided early air cover for the initial NATO operation in Afghanistan. The 9/11 attacks were from a group sheltered by Afghanistan. France sent troops after 9/11.

?????? OK.

Germany also didn‘t send troops to W‘s vendetta against Hussein in 2003, because then-Chancellor Schröder didn’t believe anything W‘s administration said to justify the attack on Iraq. Relations between Germany and the United States at the time were frosty.