Many people have the impression that Britain has always seemed to be a stabiliser over France. This view is based on three main aspects:
First of all, in the heyday of both sides, Britain had more colonies than France, known as the "empire on which the sun never sets", and has always been the number one power in the world, while France, although strong, has always been in the position of "the second in the millennium".
Secondly, the performance during World War II is remarkable. France resisted only briefly before surrendering, while Britain held on to the English Channel, successfully fighting Germany with naval and air superiority.
Third, the UK is now better than France in terms of economic aggregate and per capita income, London ranks higher than Paris as a global city, and its status as a financial center is better than that of a fashion capital.
From the above aspects, it can indeed be concluded that Britain is slightly stronger than France. However, it should be clear that the most important thing to evaluate whether a country is developed or not is to look at its industrial structure.
The UK's industrial structure is not healthy and is overly dependent on the financial sector, while France has a complete industrial manufacturing chain, mostly self-contained.
France has core technologies in many fields, such as space, nuclear power, large aircraft, military industry and telecommunications, while Britain has lagged far behind. For example, in terms of car manufacturing, France has giants such as Renault and Peugeot, which export more than 4 million units, while the UK exports limited domestic cars.
In the field of aviation manufacturing, France's Airbus is on par with Boeing, while the United Kingdom is left with only Rolls-Royce Aviation. In shipbuilding and military industry, France is also far ahead of Britain.
In addition, in the field of light industry, France crushed Britain. French luxury goods sell all over the world, French red wine is famous all over the world, and French cuisine is synonymous with haute cuisine.
In addition, France has excelled in terms of political influence. France has strong economic control in Africa, making $500 billion a year in profits, while Britain's political influence is waning.
Despite the strong British cultural influence, such as the Beatles and the Harry Potter series, France is far ahead in many areas of heavy and light industry.
Overall, France is more competitive in terms of industrial strength and economic diversification, which deserves to be taken seriously.