Daily Press Briefing
Statements made by
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson
(excerpts)
(Paris, July 19, 2006)
[Please note that only the original French text issued by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs may be considered official.]
SAUDI ARABIA/FRANCE
HRH Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz al-Saoud, Crown Prince and Minister for Defense and Civil Aviation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, makes an official visit to France July 19 and 20.
On Thursday, July 20, President Chirac will have a meeting with the crown prince followed by an official luncheon.
On July 19 National Assembly Speaker Jean-Louis Debré will host a dinner in his honor. Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin will give a dinner in honor of the crown prince on July 20.
The visit comes in the context of the excellent relations between our two countries and the strategic partnership concluded during the president’s visit to Saudi Arabia in 1996. We attach great importance to the solid and trustful dialogue between our two countries as evidenced by the visit of His Majesty Crown Prince Abdullah to Paris in April 2005 and the president’s visit to Riyadh in March. These regular contacts confirm the broad convergence of views we have with the kingdom on all regional questions.
The talks will focus on regional and international questions, in particular the situation in Lebanon, the Middle East and Iraq and the Iranian question. On the bilateral level, the various political, civil and military aspects of our relationship will be examined, along with economic aspects. We wish to strengthen our cooperation in all these areas at a time when the kingdom is engaged in a process of economic and social reforms.
1-So far 811 French nationals have returned to France in the repatriation operation mounted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the first trip of the ferry Iera Petra between Beirut and Larnaca, which also took a hundred or so foreign nationals, our compatriots returned to France on two Air France aircraft chartered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first flight arrived last night at 7:30 p.m. at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport, the second this morning at 8:15 a.m.
2-A second trip by the ferry is planned for today. It is scheduled to take on about 800 French nationals and 200 Europeans who should thus be able to reach Larnaca before tomorrow morning. A third trip is scheduled for Friday.
3-In addition 300 other individuals, French and Europeans, are embarking on the frigate Jean de Vienne for Cyprus.
4-In order to repatriate our fellow citizens and European nationals in satisfactory conditions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is continuing to add to its arrangements.
The Ministry’s crisis-management unit remains operational with a staff of about 20 to direct, organize and coordinate the repatriation arrangements and deal with calls from the families of French citizens in Lebanon (over 12,000 since the free phone number was set up: 0800 174 174, on July 14).
Our embassy staff in Beirut has been reinforced with personnel from the Foreign Ministry (10), Interior (16 civil defense people and 7 police officers), and Health (1 first aid person). In addition 39 officials have been deployed in Cyprus in order to help our embassy with the transfer of people being repatriated (13 from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 15 civil defense workers, 10 from the Red Cross, 1 first aid person). Ministry personnel and health workers are assisting passengers on the Air France flights.
Q - Has the Jean de Vienne docked in Beirut or are people boarding via helicopters?
The Jean de Vienne has docked in Beirut. People can embark normally.
France strongly condemns the actions by certain parties to obstruct the mobile courts in Côte d’Ivoire. They clearly constitute an obstacle to the peace process and to the prime minister’s action to implement the roadmap that is to lead to indisputable elections before October 31, 2006.
France recalls that in accordance with the communiqué issued after the meeting held at the initiative of the UN secretary-general on July 5, the so-called “Yamoussoukro III,” at least 50 mobile courts were to be deployed before July 15 for the program.
The IWG, in which Minister Delegate for Cooperation, Development and Francophony Brigitte Girardin will participate, meets on July 20 to review the implementation of the Yamoussourko III timetable. It will identify the obstructions over the last few weeks and report to the UN Security Council sanctions committee.
Q - Do you have any information about the security of French nationals in view of the demonstrations in Abidjan this morning? Are there any special advisories? Do you know already if the IWG meeting scheduled for Thursday and Ms Girardin’s visit are on?
According to our information, the situation in Abidjan seems to be calming The usual advisories for our nationals remain in effect.
The IWG will be held as scheduled tomorrow. Ms Girardin will be taking part.
TRANSPOSITION OF EU DIRECTIVES
The European Commission published its report on July 18. It shows that unimplemented law in France was 1.9% at the end of May 2006.
European Affairs Minister Delegate Catherine Colonna presented a report to the Cabinet on Wednesday, July 19. She said, “The satisfactory transposition of directives is a key dimension of juridical security for our citizens and businesses. France notified the Commission of the transposition of 37 directives in the last six months. Such a figure has never been achieved before. For example in the sphere of the environment where there are many texts to be transposed, France has no backlog of directives to transpose.
France has accordingly moved up in the classification of the 27 EU member countries and now ranks 17th.
These results were made possible thanks to the mobilization of the government and parliament.
In order to achieve the target set by the heads of state and government of a legislation deficit of 1.5% and to further improve France’s ranking, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin last spring asked the Council of State to conduct a study on amending certain administrative procedures with a view to being more efficient in the process of transposing EU legislation. The report will be submitted in the fall.
On July 20, 2006 the European Gendarmerie Force (EGF) will be declared fully operational at a meeting of the high-level interministerial committee (CIMIN) which will be held in Madrid. France welcomes this further step in the concrete implementation of Defense Europe.
Established on September 17, 2004 by a declaration of intent of ministers from the five founding countries, the EGF grew out of a French initiative. It involves five countries: France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Portugal. The Force contributes to strengthening Defense Europe. While its main mission is to be at the disposal of the European Union, it will also respond to requests from other organizations such as the UN, OSCE, NATO, even the African Union or any other ad hoc international coalition. Its intervention in all cases will be under UN mandate.
The EGF combines police forces that have military status. It has a permanent staff based in Vicenza, Italy, and is under the command of General Gérard Deanaz. It will be able to mobilize 800 gendarmes in less than 30 days and deploy up to 2,300 gendarmes.
The EGF aims to fill the operational gap seen in crisis-management operations between the time armed forces enter a theater of operations and the time the police forces can perform normally. It will be capable of intervening and carrying out most police missions as a substitute for a non-existent or failing local police force in a non-secure environment. In a theater of operations it could provide protection for individuals and property, and take part in public order, judicial police investigations,the fight against organized crime and border control./.
Embassy of France, July 19, 2006