British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac clashed openly Monday night over the future course of Europe's relationship with the US as Blair insisted they must work together for world peace and Chirac suggested it is increasingly pointless.
Chirac, speaking ahead of his state visit to London, said that Britain had gained nothing in return for supporting the US over Iraq and that he did not think "it is in the nature of our American friends today" to pay back favors.
"I'm not sure, the US being what it is today, whether it is possible for anyone, even the British, to play the role of the friendly go-between," he said.
The French president's words came in direct contradiction to Blair, who insisted last night that Europe needed to work with the US and could help shape its policies.
Blair used a keynote speech in the Guildhall in London to warn Europe to stop "ridiculing American arguments and parodying their political leadership" and to concentrate on persuading Washington that "terrorism won't be beaten by toughness alone."
But Chirac said Britain's special relationship with the US had brought few dividends.
"When the divergence of views between France and Britain was at its height, when the English wanted to follow the Americans and we didn't ... I said to Tony Blair, your position should at least serve another purpose," Chirac said.
"You should obtain in exchange for it a new start for the peace process in the Middle East. Because that is vital. Well, Britain gave its support (on Iraq) -- but I have not been impressed by the payback," he said.
The clash occurs two days before Chirac visits London to conclude months of celebrations to mark the centenary of the often-stormy Anglo-French entente cordiale. Blair urged both sides to stop behaving "arrogantly" towards each other.
US policy was evolving fast, he suggested, and Europe should seize its chance to help shape its policies.
Chirac insisted that profound differences between Paris and London over Iraq had not soured his relations with Blair.
Asked if he would tell the prime minister that he had made a mistake in supporting the US, Chirac said he would not, "firstly because I am polite, and secondly because I do not think he did."
He added in an interview with British correspondents at the Elysee palace: "Blair took the position he thought he had to take in the interest of his country and his convictions.
"The only problem we have ever had was over agriculture, not Iraq. On Iraq, I respect his position. On agriculture one day I got angry, and he did too. We said some disagreeable things to each other at the end of a summit. But we have never crossed words on Iraq," Chirac said.
Chirac denied the meeting between the two leaders would be acrimonious.
"When I go to Britain I go happy, I have no desire to argue," he said.
"I arrive, I ask after Leo, someone goes to get Leo, Leo starts saying `Bonjour Monsieur Chirac' in French, I'm happy, and there we are," Chirac said.
"It's very curious, this vision of permanent confrontation. I have no confrontation with the English in general, or with Blair in particular," he said.
He described the Franco-British relationship as "built on competition, which implies mutual esteem ... It's a kind of violent love affair."
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
‘DELUSIONAL’: Targeting the families of Hamas’ leaders would not push the group to change its position or to give up its demands for Palestinians, Ismail Haniyeh said Israeli aircraft on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate ceasefire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.” The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated ceasefire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of