Daily Press Briefing
Statements made by
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson
(excerpts)
(Paris, November 30, 2007)
[Please note that only the original French text issued by the
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs may be considered official.
SUDAN, CHAD, EUROPEAN UNION/AFRICA SUMMIT
SUDAN
=====
France condemns the assassination of four people in the premises of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Bor, in South Sudan, on November 29.
It is a horrendous act which was committed in violation of the most elementary humanitarian principles and which affects an already particularly vulnerable population. The victims were patients at the neighboring hospital, along with members of their families, who had just been evacuated by MSF to escape their assailants.
CHAD
====
Q – A rebel movement in Chad has just announced a “state of war” against the French forces there. Do you have any more information and can we have your comments?
I’ve read the wire service report. I’ve no further information. We are paying close attention to what is happening in this region and we are extremely concerned about the clashes that are taking place daily, one after another. We reaffirm our attachment to the implementation of the Syrte Agreement of October 25. The seriousness of the situation shows clearly that it is necessary to make progress in implementing the operations that we’ve proposed at both the European and UN level. Our concern in this region is for the safety of the local civilian refugee and displaced populations; the deployment of a multinational presence remains essential for their protection. I hope that we will manage to set up this international presence which should help make the region safer.
Q – The international presence, at least as far as the European force is concerned, was supposed to start before the end of November. Do you have any details about the timetable and the modalities of deployment?
No more than what we’ve said. The last force-generation conference when we reviewed the various contributions revealed that there were still needs for which we’ve not had responses, in particular with regard to means of transport. We’re continuing to undertake with General Nash all the necessary contacts with our partners and we hope that the EUFOR operation can be set up as quickly as possible between now and the end of the year.
Q – The EUFOR spokesman has just announced that he can’t imagine sending in soldiers before Christmas this year. What are the reasons? Are there countries that promised soldiers and have reneged?
As I’ve already said, there’ve been regular appeals to the major countries which could contribute, and at this time, we still need helicopters and equipment. We hope this operation can be quickly set up.
EUROPEAN UNION/AFRICA SUMMIT
============================
Q – What practical results are you expecting from the summit?
In general we’re seeking to give new impetus so as to move forward in EU-Africa relations. The last summit was held in Cairo in 2000. We are making progress in the talks with the Africans, especially on the economic partnership agreements. We hope at the time of this summit to be able to say again that we’re making progress and that we’d like to see still more progress in all the political and economic areas with Africa. That’s what we’re expecting./.
