Statements made by the Ministry of Foreign and European Spokesperson (Paris, November 5, 2010)

Bernard Kouchner’s visit to Lebanon (November 5 to 6)
Iran


Bernard Kouchner will visit Lebanon from November 5 to 6.

He will signal France’s support for Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s national unity government and the Lebanese institutions.
In this period of increasing tension, he will urge everyone to demonstrate restraint and responsibility.


When the issue is discussed at the UN Security Council, he will reaffirm France’s attachment to the successful completion of the mission of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.


When he arrives in Beirut he will be received by the President of the Republic, Michel Suleiman, and the Prime Minister, Saad Hariri.
During this visit, Bernard Kouchner will also have several meetings with representatives from the entire Lebanese political spectrum.


Which representatives from the political parties will Bernard Kouchner meet?


The minister will meet with all of the political parties represented in the Lebanese Parliament.


When will the minister meet the press?


There will be a press conference at 4pm on Saturday at the Résidence des Pins, the French residence. The minister will have the opportunity to give details of all of his meetings and explain the messages that he conveyed.


Is there any link or relationship between the minister’s long and constructive meeting with the Foreign Minister and President Berri in Paris and Bernard Kouchner’s mission to Lebanon? Does it fall in line with these meetings, or at least partly?


Bernard Kouchner’s visit to Lebanon is linked to the action that he is carrying out, that France is carrying out, in Lebanon and in the region aimed at easing tensions and achieving solutions. It’s not the first time that there have been meetings with Lebanese political leaders. The exchanges that we have at all levels with them take place in various ways in Paris as in Lebanon.


Mr. Berri was one of the actors that explained the position held by the Lebanese opposition regarding the issue of the international tribunal. That was the reason for the first question. Would he have a better understanding of the issue if he kept this position held by the Lebanese opposition in mind?


I think that the minister has everyone’s position in mind. Our exchanges with the actors in Lebanese political life take place frequently enough for us to be familiar with the position they have on many issues. Regarding the STL, as you know, a debate is taking place on this topic today at the Security Council.


With respect to this issue, the minister will of course reaffirm France’s attachment to the successful completion of the mission of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.


Why was this visit organized at the last minute? He was due to go to a meeting in Abu Dhabi with all of the ministers from the Gulf countries. According to the information issued by the authorities in Abu Dhabi, it was canceled. This meeting was apparently planned during his visit to London with the president. Why was the visit so urgent?


Urgency is a very relative term when organizing a ministerial agenda, especially if there are meetings with Heads of State. The visit took place when both sides had a gap in their schedules. I think that the last few weeks have clearly shown that France continues to be involved in Lebanon and in the Middle East peace process. It therefore made sense to make another visit to the region, to meet the Lebanese authorities in Lebanon at this time.


Will the minister go to Damascus?


The visit to Lebanon is scheduled to take place from November 5 to 6. There are no plans for him to go to Damascus.

France has been asked on several occasions by Lebanese leaders to delay the issuance of the bill of indictment. Do you have any comment?


The STL is a court that operates independently. France does not give instructions to the STL.

[…]

Iran

Is there a reaction from the Quai d’Orsay to the American draft proposal mentioned yesterday in the “Le Monde” newspaper relating to a large quantity of low-enriched fuel from Iran and various other conditions?

This is not a new offer, we agree on that point. The updated offer takes into account Iran’s continued enrichment of uranium and in this respect there is obviously no disagreement between the E3+3. We engage in regular consultations with our partners regarding the Iranian nuclear issue. What we all unfortunately note is that there is currently no response from the Iranians regarding the possible holding of negotiations, which doesn’t stop the E3+3 from being utterly united and determined to reach a negotiated solution to the Iranian nuclear crisis.

What about the date of November 16?


It was mentioned but at this stage there is no response from the Iranians regarding the holding of the negotiations. There are no proposals with regard to the date or the place. As the spokesperson reaffirmed, what we’d like to see are serious discussions on a serious issue regarding which the international community has serious and major concerns. I won’t go back over all the positions taken up by the Six. The most recent position was expressed by Mrs. Ashton on behalf of the Six; this position was reaffirmed in New York on September 22. In the absence of a serious response from Iran for several months now regarding this issue, and in view of the continued proliferation in Iran, the E3+3’s offer has been updated. Regarding this update, and the principle of updating the offer, there is no disagreement within the E3+3.

Returning fuel to the Bushehr plant; that seemed like something new to me…


Again, the principle of this offer and the principle of updating this offer to take into account the fact that the Iranians are continuing their enrichment activities are nothing new. This is incorporated into the E3+3 agreement, it’s automatic, it’s logical. The E3+3 are forced to take into account the fact that Iran is continuing its enrichment activities and that updating the offer is really just the logical thing to do.