désintéressement

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French désintéressement (“disinterest, detachment”).

Noun

désintéressement (uncountable)

1. (diplomacy) Neutrality; renunciation of involvement or (especially territorial) ambitions.
   • 1922, Alfred Francis Pribram, “Austrian Empire”, in Encyclopædia Britannica, 12th edition, volume 30, page 336:

     She demanded, among other things, the whole of S. Tirol, with the boundaries of the Italian kingdom of 1811, Gorizia and Gradisca, and the conversion of Trieste with its surrounding territory into a community independent of Austria-Hungary; […] and a declaration of Austria-Hungary’s désintéressement as regards Albania.

   • 1939 March 19, Alexander Cadogan, edited by David Dilks, The Diaries of Sir Alexander Cadogan: 1938–45, published 1971, page 161:

     P.M. said he had foreseen this, and to meet it, and stop it, had idea that we should put before France, Poland and Soviet a text of a declaration of non-désinteressement.

   • 2015, Klaus Bachmann, “Playing on Three Levels at the Same Time – German Public Opinion and German Foreign Policy Toward the Crisis in Ukraine”, in Karol Kujawa, Valeriy Morkva, editors, 2014 Crisis in Ukraine: Perspectives, Reflections, International Reverberations, →ISBN:

     The fact that the Russian government had reacted reluctantly and had apparently been surprised by the velocity of the events unfolding was interpreted as Russian désintéressement.

   • 2017, Andreas Rose, translated by Rona Johnston, Between Empire and Continent: British Foreign Policy before the First World War, →ISBN, page 38:

     He [Charles Hardinge] was therefore less inclined to be concerned about the Afghanistan question and with regard to the Near East and the Balkans considered a demonstrative policy of ‘désintéressement’ on England’s part to be the best solution.

French

Etymology

From désintéresser (“to lose interest”) +‎ -ment.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /de.zɛ̃.te.ʁɛs.mɑ̃/

Noun

désintéressement m (plural désintéressements)

1. disinterest, disinterestedness, unselfishness, detachment
2. buying out (an associate), paying off (a creditor)

Usage notes

• Not to be confused with désintérêt.

Further reading

• “désintéressement”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.