Today's Date:

Statements to the press made by M. Bernard Kouchner, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs

US/FRANCE MEETING

THE MINISTER - Everyone is asking me the same question. I've answered ten times over, no, no. I'd decided to make this trip from the outset, three months ago. In fact we've been studying the successive crises - Lebanon, Darfur, Iraq. And not forgetting the Palestinian issue obviously. Mr Bush and Mr Sarkozy didn't talk about Iraq. I don't have to make decisions with the Americans. France can decide on her own. She can also decide things with her American friends - being friends with the Americans also means trying to always tell them the truth.

(…)

IRAQ/DEMOCRACY/US

THE MINISTER - By themselves, no. I don't believe so. You're calling it an invasion but here, everyone who spoke to me, the Iraqis, call it "liberation”, even though afterwards they didn't condone the method and they want the Americans to leave the country. And that's because there was Saddam Hussein's dictatorship.

(…)

THE MINISTER - I hope so. A number of things have been suggested to me, but I hope especially to get other Europeans to share France's interest in Iraq so that the European Union realizes the need to be in this part in the world, alongside people who are suffering and who want to find a solution.

The day before I came, I phoned the British and Germans, Mr Solana, Ms Rice and the Portuguese presidency.

Now I'm going to brief them on what I've seen. I'll be talking first of all to the French, of course.

FRANCE/IRAQ/RECONSTRUCTION

THE MINISTER - Yes, I'm thinking about it, I don't know what form it will take. A political presence yes, there's a diplomatic presence already - our ambassador and diplomats stayed on throughout the crisis, the whole duration of the war, and our embassy was the first to reopen. They stayed here bravely, and not in the green zone where everyone is protected, but in Baghdad.

THE MINISTER - Yes, of course, we've had economic proposals and we're going to open a diplomatic office in Kurdistan and in the south.

(…)

UN ROLE IN IRAQ

THE MINISTER - I don't know. My impression, from various quarters and from all the talks I had, is that there is a recognition that the United Nations should play a bigger role. France is a permanent member of the Security Council, and in that sense I think that we can work with everybody. Again, we're friends with the Americans. I think they approved of my visit and they thought it was a good opportunity to work together, but one shouldn't hide the truth from one's friends.

I'm not going to hide anything I've seen from the Americans. You don't find the Iraqis, the people, in the "green zone” but where you do find them is elsewhere in the city of Baghdad and in the entire country. People are very worried. You say they need water and electricity, yes. They also need to return to their homes because four million people are refugees in neighbouring countries or even refugees and displaced within their own country. That's important for me, and I think that Europe, which has stayed very much out of this crisis, must take an interest in it. (…)./.