French in Space

Why is it that the French are never in space? You see the Americans building space stations out there. The Russians were right on the heals of the US. China even made it up their. Hell even in the movies every ones going up. 007 was shooting people in Moonraker with laser guns in space. The Polish even made it up their with Stanislaw Lem and his were just books. So what every thing the French say sounds like milk chocolate even when its bad news. I can see the French in outer space with there berets and little Eiffel tower statues glued to their consuls. What about Jules Vern? Wasn't he French? What about the man in the moon?