Minister’s visit to the Middle East
Iran/ Nuclear
Afghanistan
Yemen
Minister’s visit to the Middle East
We spoke to you last week about the Minister’s tour of the Middle East. The Israeli, Palestinian and Syrian stages of the visit have been postponed – for scheduling reasons – but not cancelled. The minister will therefore depart on Thursday evening for Lebanon and he will return Saturday morning.
We are now trying to quickly arrange the schedule for this trip.
Q - It would seem that the Israelis did not want the minister to go to Gaza. Did you submit to their demand to postpone the visit?
I do not have the details but the visit was postponed due to organization issues relating to the program.
Q - From which side? Was the delay jointly agreed?
The Syrian, Palestinian and Israeli stages of the trip have been postponed. We are in contact with the partners concerned. Furthermore, the minister has an increasingly busy schedule here. There is an important parliament debate, as well as an important European meeting, the General Affairs and External Relations Council on Monday and Tuesday which requires preparation. In order to accommodate all these constraints, the minster will only be able to go to Lebanon this time. But we are working on quickly organizing another trip to the countries that he cannot visit this week.
Q - Is the Syrian stage of the trip a problem due to Syria’s attitude to the association agreement or is there something else?
Regarding Syria and the association agreement with the EU, we took the initiative during the French presidency of the EU Council to relaunch the association agreement between Syria and the EU. Since our initiative, this agreement has been initialed, updated and translated. The next step is therefore the signing of the agreement. A date of October 26 was put forward by the Swedish presidency of the EU Council in Damascus and we welcome this. It is now up to the Syrian authorities to respond to this proposal and to suggest another date if necessary.
Our position on this issue is well known. We want the agreement to be signed as quickly as possible. Its implementation will be of benefit to Syria and the European Union.
Q - Why did Bernard Kouchner postpone his visit to Damascus?
I explained the overall situation to you because all the visits are in one tour. Therefore I don’t think we have to look at each country. It is a general organization problem that has affected this trip. That is why we are now working on arranging other dates for the trip.
Q - Regarding Syria, was the imprisonment of the human rights lawyer a factor? Regarding Gaza, was this stage of the trip included in the program that was postponed?
Concerning the human rights case, please refer to the statement that we made yesterday. You know that we are talking with the Syrian representatives about everything, including these questions.
Today we must continue with our work and try to quickly arrange new dates.
Q - Does the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs need Israeli approval in order to visit Gaza?
The procedure is always the same. Bernard Kouchner has been to Gaza several times.
Q - In practice, is Israeli approval required?
The usual procedure is the same one that has always existed for visits to Gaza by French leaders. It is determined with the parties concerned. Obviously when you visit a territory, you coordinate with all parties. This is not a new thing. There are many precedents to that question.
Iran/ Nuclear
Q - The Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister said this morning that there was no reason for France to be in Vienna. A spokesperson from the Iranian agency that deals with nuclear issues said that France was not eligible to talk with Iran. Iran does not want to talk directly with France. What is your reaction?
First of all we reaffirm the advantages of dialogue. We should always talk. Secondly, the meeting in Vienna is in progress. It is a meeting of experts in which we are taking part. Not only are we present, but we are taking part in the discussions. This meeting is not over; we are of course therefore waiting for the outcome. It began yesterday, it should finish this afternoon, it is being conducted under the auspices of the IAEA and we are taking part. The discussions are continuing today in order to outline an agreement on the delivery of fuel. A number of technical parameters should be considered within this framework. Based on these elements we will be able to determine, if necessary, which States would be eligible to be a party to this delivery agreement.
We hope that the continuation of this meeting will be devoted to finding a solution within a legal framework that will guarantee the optimum conditions for security, safety and non-proliferation.
It is a meeting of experts. Regarding the details of the discussions or the appeals from both sides to talk or not to talk, we would like to reintroduce a spirit of responsibility, seriousness and calm in this discussion and therefore not make statements that would interfere with efforts which we hope will succeed.
Q - The Iranian minister also talked about Eurodif. What is France’s current position?
I have not seen the Iranian Foreign Minister’s statement on Eurodif.
It was issued during discussions in Vienna.
It would be completely irresponsible to talk about the contents of the discussions in Vienna. However, if you want to talk about Eurodif in general terms, please refer to the Franco-Iranian agreement that was signed in 1991. It has not changed since then. The agreement now has a long history and our position with regard to it has not changed.
Q - If France is not party to an agreement, would that be a failure?
That is a hypothetical question.
Q - From a technical point of view, if there is an agreement, are we then meant to send the text to the UN Security Council in New York or will the Six have to meet? What would be the next step?
The meeting in Vienna is currently in progress under the auspices of the IAEA. We are discussing quantities, the degree of enrichment, the delivery schedule and the stages of enrichment. We are really in the middle of discussing the technical operation and IAEA is overseeing this.
Q - And then the IAEA will go the Security Council?
As far as I know, no. The IAEA has a mandate to manage this whole issue, whether it be providing support for Iranian civilian nuclear activities or shedding light on and ensuring the transparency of other activities in this area.
Q - If there is an agreement, then we don’t need to go to New York, it is immediately enforceable?
The IAEA must give its agreement and manage the enforcement of the agreement.
Q - All the signatories are therefore involved?
The proposal made by the “E3+3” in June 2008 to Iran includes an extremely ambitious and generous civilian nuclear component. This offer has been on the table for several months. There is no need for approval, once we have a situation that falls within the framework of a civilian nuclear program under the control of the IAEA in compliance with the NPT and Iran’s international commitments there is no need to go back to the UN Security Council.
Afghanistan
Q - Concerning the polemic regarding the Italian presence in Afghanistan and the attitude towards the Taliban which could have been dangerous for the French, does France consider the matter to be closed or is there an investigation in progress?
Concerning the investigation, you should speak with NATO. The presidency of the Italian Council gave a reaction to this information in The Times. We have taken note of the very firm and emphatic denial that was issued by the Italian authorities concerning these allegations.
Please refer to the statements made by the French Minister of Defense a few days ago.
Q - Have you questioned the Italian authorities on this issue?
We are in contact bilaterally and within the framework of cooperation between the Member States in Brussels within NATO. We are in continuous contact. We do not need to take any official steps in terms of verification. We believe that a very formal communiqué from the presidency of the Italian Council makes a lot of sense and is meaningful and in this case the communiqué was very clear. We generally have frequent contact with our Italian partners. The matter was opened by this British newspaper and closed the next day by the presidency of the Italian Council.
Yemen
Q - The war in Yemen is continuing despite your appeals for a return to dialogue, the end of fighting; do you think that after 4 years the Security Council should assume its responsibility and intervene? What is your opinion?
I already had the opportunity to report the deterioration in the security and humanitarian situation in Yemen. We are very concerned. Today we are reaffirming our appeals for the immediate cessation of fighting and for a political settlement that would allow the reestablishment of peace, stability and the authority of the Yemeni State over its own territory. The United Nations is already involved as demonstrated by the visit to Yemen by Sir John Holmes, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. We support this measure; there was an urgent need for a representative of this level to carry out a field visit. There is a situation of deadlock with regard to 2 issues: the civilian population that is suffering as a result of the fighting and those that want to bring aid to the civilian population since aid cannot be transported in complete security. France therefore demands, together with its European partners, that the Yemeni authorities, as well as the rebels, facilitate international and non-governmental efforts to help the displaced, the number of which is increasing alarmingly. France believes that it is important to mobilize efforts through the UNHCR to support the displaced civilian populations. France decided to respond to the emergency appeal by the UN Higher Commissioner for Refugees by contributing € 0.5 million to its actions in Yemen.
Q - There is demand for a political component in the Security Council. The concerns also relate to the south of the country. There is political instability in the country. Should the Security Council intervene? There are many demands for a conference on Yemen. Does France support these demands?
Concerning the international community’s intervention, all efforts aimed at political action to end the fighting will be supported by France.