On 12 February 1969, at the urgent request of the United Kingdom delegation, the Secretary-General of Western European Union (WEU) convenes a meeting of the Council on the situation in the Middle East. The French Government is hostile to the British proposal and refuses to take part in the meeting, held in London on 14 February. France’s decision to boycott the meetings of the WEU Council leads to an open crisis between French President Charles de Gaulle and WEU. This WEU ‘empty chair’ crisis lasts until 1970.