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Sun, Mar 23, 2003 - Page 3 News List

Chirac says `non' again

POST-WAR RULE The French president says he will reject any effort to legitimize the US-led attack on Iraq, while France refused to comply with a US request to expel Iraqi diplomats

AP AND REUTERS , BRUSSELS AND PARIS

Paris said a question of French sovereignty led it to refuse the US request, while the Netherlands said Iraqi envoys could stay as long as they abide by diplomatic rules.

"We have been asked to expel Iraqi diplomats in Paris. Such a decision concerns our sovereignty. There is no reason to do so," a French Foreign Ministry official told journalists.

Berlin, which has already expelled four Iraqi diplomats, politely said "no thanks" to a US call for it to close Baghdad's mission in Germany.

On the first day of a US-led war against Iraq, the US said on Thursday it was expelling three Iraqi diplomats based in Washington and appealed to other countries to close down Iraqi embassies on their territory.

"We have no intention at the moment to expel diplomats or close the embassy ... we have no reason to do so," Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesman Bart Jochems said.

The US also asked other countries to freeze Iraqi government bank accounts, protect the embassy buildings and ensure their records were not destroyed.

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