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STATEMENT BY THE SPOKESPERSON
FRENCH MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
March 5, 2003
I wish to call your attention to the spokesperson's declaration yesterday:
[begin quote] I have been questioned by the media about the statement a parliamentary representative attributed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, concerning a French veto at the United Nations regarding Iraq a bullet in the back of the United States.
I am in a position to assert that Mr. de Villepin did not make such a statement. It does not correspond to the position of the French authorities. As the minister indicated this afternoon at the joint press conference he gave with his Russian and German counterparts, we will not allow a resolution authorizing the use of force to pass in the present context. France and Russia, as permanent members of the Security Council, will shoulder their responsibility fully. [End quote]
I will add that this denial also applies to the other statements attributed to the minister on this occasion by the Herald Tribune.
Q - In view of the Iraq crisis, what is the current level of consultation between France and the Gulf nations? Has the minister spoken recently with one or several of his counterparts from this region, and what outcome do you expect from such contacts?
Consultation is taking place at the ministerial level. Our Secretary of State, Mr. Renaud Muselier, traveled to Doha this week to attend a meeting between the European Union and the Gulf Arab States Cooperation Council. On this occasion he was in contact with all the Gulf states, as we stated.
Q - Would blocking the American resolution plan in the Security Council gravely disrupt relations between the United States and France, and between the United States and the United Nations?
I would remind you that we are working towards unity in the Security Council for the implementation of Resolution 1441.
On the first point, my answer is no, we do not think so, and we very obviously wish for the opposite. The current issue of discussion is the disarmament of Iraq, not transatlantic relations.
Concerning the United Nations, we believe they will remain central and indispensable in any event.