The problem with France is that they hit their limit a long time ago. They've been incredibly lucky to have come this far and it wasn't because of them. It was because of their friends. They used to be dominate in the Europe because the UK didn't care. Russia was poor and beyond the German states. Italy and Germany were woefully split and divided. They also had vast amounts of colonies they could rape to power their nation. The mid 19th century was when things changed. The Industrial revolution meant that you could build a strong domestic economy based on local industries, railroads, coal mines and steel plants. They were worth much more than taking money from poor Africans and Asians. At this time the US started to become the largest economy in the world without a colonial empire and the Prussians created a German economic zone.
The 1871 war and the period afterwards showed that a united Germany even without vast colonies is much more powerful and wealthier. The greatest saving grace for France was that the UK joined WW1 and stopped the Germans from overrunning them. After WW1 they went on a mission to permanently cripple Germany and they still couldn't compete against a weakened Germany.
When they and the UK waged an imperialistic war on Egypt to seize the Suez canal after WW2, they were opposed by the new real powers. The US and USSR. Both nations backed down and the UK gave up all pretension of independent foreign policy from the US. The French didn't and for a time they were lucky. The European community that was created was perfect for them since countries like West Germany and Netherlands were meek internationally. The French were the ones in charge politically while the Germans dominated economically. This bolstered them because they were at the head of one richest political block in the world.
Now they aren't. The Germans are no longer playing second fiddle. They want to have a say and their voice is the biggest. America is also more dominate over the EU today than it ever was in the Cold War when thousands of American troops were stationed. Eastern European countries care more about what Germany and the US has to say than France. French attempts to create a Mediterranean union that excluded most of the EU (especially the UK, Germany and other rivals) was shot down very quickly.
They have nowhere to go but down and so far their best plan is to get even more attached to the US and Germany. A far cry from the days of De Gaulle. The world is moving on and they are running on fumes. In 2000 France would have never played second fiddle in solving Europe's biggest political crisis. Now Hollande and Sarkozy have no other idea than to follow Merkel's lead.
To sum up , France is just a policy of pretending