The military and imperial strains of a Franco-British union

How would a federal Franco-British union survive and operate during the Cold War?

It could become a global third power through military specialization and a federal Commonwealth, but only by resolving severe political and decolonization conflicts.

Britain and France begin with conflicting pressures over empire, decolonization, political leadership, and the language of federal government. One military bargain could emphasize British naval power and French land power while sharing air responsibilities, but integrating institutions would remain difficult. A surviving legitimate French government changes de Gaulle's role and may produce a compromise between French imperial control and British Commonwealth-style dominion status. If the union expands to the Netherlands, the Dominions, India, and other associated states, it becomes a global power comparable with the United States and a major challenge to the Soviet bloc. That scale might prevent the Suez Crisis in its historical form while creating new struggles over Egypt, federation membership, and regime change.