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Daily Press Briefing Statements made by [Please note that only the original French text issued by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs may be considered official.] TV5
France is pleased that the board of TV5-Monde has unanimously elected Serge Adda to head the operation.
Mr. Adda takes over from Jean Stock who spent three years at the helm and skillfully reinvigorated and developed the TV5-Monde channel which can now be seen on the five continents. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to pay special tribute to Jean Stock for the remarkable results and decisive changes he brought to TV5.
In line with the professionalization of TV5 decided in 1998, the French government proposed to its French-speaking partners a successor to Jean Stock, a person who would be an acknowledged professional in the sector with experience in running a television channel and familiar with the economic and technological issues of international broadcasting. Serge Adda, a TV professional with long experience in international television and familiarity with the Francophone world, was in this regard the best person to continue the development of TV5 begun by Jean Stock.
I also want to point out that he was elected at the same time to head Canal France International (CFI)--it being decided by the government three years ago that the two posts should be held by the same person.
German Chancellor Schröder will be in Paris on Wednesday, October 24, for a working dinner with the president and prime minister to be attended by both foreign ministers. I can confirm that the dinner will be held at the Hôtel Marigny.
The meeting is part of the process launched at Blaesheim in January when it was agreed that the participants would meet in this format every six to eight weeks to discuss the main European, international and bilateral issues. Tomorrow's meeting was prepared when the two foreign ministers met in Munich on October 15.
The participants in tomorrow's meeting, i.e. the president, the prime minister, the German chancellor and the two foreign ministers, will review the international situation, especially from the standpoint of the war on terrorism. They will also discuss the situation in the Middle East and the Balkans. Lastly, they will look at the main European issues, the preparation for the upcoming European meetings, and prospects for the European council in Laeken.
The escalation begun by the Israeli army goes against the objectives of the return to security which the Israeli government wants. Without a return to cooperation on security and the resumption of political dialogue, it is an illusion to believe that it will be possible to put an end to the clashes. Like Mr. Védrine on Saturday, and the U.S. Department of State yesterday, we ask Israel to withdraw immediately from the areas it has entered. The Palestinian Authority for its part must take the actions it has pledged so as to regain control of the situation in the Palestinian autonomous territories.
France, which is committed to constant political dialogue with its partners on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, has welcomed Morocco's idea. May I remind you that it was King Mohammed VI of Morocco who on September 28 called for a meeting of the 11 foreign ministers of countries that make up the Mediterranean Forum and for a special session of the Forum on October 25 and 26 at Agadir, with Greece taking the chair.
The informal nature of the Forum makes it possible to have regular political dialogue among the member countries, and we consider the Forum an excellent framework for pursuing the dialogue between cultures and civilizations that the present international situation makes even more necessary.
Of the countries which make up the Mediterranean Forum, the following are members: Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey.
Q - When were the last meetings?
The Forum was set up in 1994 on the initiative of France and Egypt. Its purpose is to be a medium for the exchange of ideas and substantive discussion among the Mediterranean countries and it's a complementary structure of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership which was started in Barcelona in 1995. The first meeting was held in July 1994 in Alexandria (Egypt), the following one in April 1995 in Sainte-Maxime, then in July 1995 in Tabarca (Tunisia), in May 1996 in Ravello (Italy), in July 1997 in Algiers (Algeria), in April 1998 in Palma de Mallorca, (Spain), in March 1999 in Malta, and in March 2000 in Funchal, Madeira. The Forum met most recently in May 2001 in Tangiers (Morocco), primarily for the purpose of discussing the economic aspects of Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. At that time, ministers spoke of fractures and cooperation in the Mediterranean, issues of security, culture, regional integration and investments.
So this time in Agadir we believe that the Forum is an excellent medium for the dialogue between cultures and civilizations that the present situation makes more necessary than ever today.
Q - What is the difference between the Forum and the Barcelona process? Are we really talking about different things?
The Mediterranean Forum consists of a small group of countries and is a forum for dialogue, for exchanging ideas, for discussions whereas the Barcelona process which started a year after the 1994 Franco-Egyptian initiative is broader and more structured as to subjects chosen for discussion and actions that might eventually be taken.
Q - The Palestinians are calling for a Security Council meeting. Do you support the request? Are you going to help them get that meeting?
The Palestinians have indeed called for a meeting of the Security Council. They have asked for the adoption of a Security Council resolution. At this stage I can say that talks are under way in New York. The point is to ascertain whether the Security Council has or can achieve the authority and requisite strength to do something useful. The deciding factor in the Security Council's strength and authority is its unanimity. I gather that this has not yet been achieved. That's the reason consultations are continuing. France is obviously willing to make any useful contribution to the current debate in that perspective.
Only if matters are decided unanimously can there be useful results from the current discussions and an eventual Security Council meeting along with the eventual adoption of a resolution.
But we are working for unanimity. We are ready to help achieve this unanimity and to help the Security Council be effective and take measures, initiatives or decisions that are useful.
Q - About the Northern Alliance. Aren't there some special difficulties?
Our position is our plan for Afghanistan which we began circulating last weekend. We are continuing to work on it, and Mr. Védrine's personal envoy, Ambassador Lafrance, is to visit in turn Iran, Pakistan and India. He will be discussing the French action plan for Afghanistan in his talks in those countries./.
Embassy of France, October 23, 2001
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