http://blogs.dailymail.com/donsurber/2007/12/30/france-stands-up-to-syria/ [rquoter] CAIRO: President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said Sunday that Paris would suspend diplomatic contacts with Syria until Damascus showed its willingness to let Lebanon elect a new president. The Western-backed government in Lebanon and the pro-Syrian opposition have been unable to overcome their disagreements to follow through with the election, and many Western countries have accused Damascus of interfering in the process — a contention that Syria denies. After meeting here with President Hosni Mubarak, Sarkozy said at a news conference that he would not have any more contact with Damascus until his government had “received proof of Syria’s intention to let Lebanon designate a president of consensus.” France, the former colonial ruler of Lebanon, has led the international effort to mediate between feuding Lebanese politicians and has consistently implored the Syrians to cooperate. Sarkozy spoke with President Bashar al-Assad as recently as the beginning of December to urge him to “facilitate” the election in Lebanon. Sarkozy sent his chief of staff, Claude Guéant, to Damascus in early November and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner met his Syrian counterpart, Walid al-Moallem, earlier that month on the sidelines of a conference in Turkey that focused on Iraq. “France has taken the responsibility of talking with Syria,” Sarkozy said in Cairo Sunday. “One must recognize today that we cannot wait any longer, Syria must stop talking and now must act.” Syria has denied meddling in the Lebanese presidential contest and has accused the French of working too closely with the United States, which Damascus contends is trying to manipulate the Lebanese political process for its own interests — an accusation that Washington denies. Lebanon has been without a president since Nov. 23, when the pro-Syrian leader Émile Lahoud stepped down at the end of his term without a successor. Opposition boycotts have thwarted attempts to choose a president by preventing a quorum in Parliament. The election was delayed Saturday for the 11th time. Lawmakers on both sides have agreed to back the army commander, General Michel Suleiman, as a compromise candidate, but Parliament must first amend the Constitution to allow a sitting military chief to become president. That process has been complicated by the opposition’s demand for a new unity government that would give it veto power over major decisions. The governing coalition has accused the opposition of obstructing the presidential vote under orders from Syria and Iran. The opposition maintains in turn that pro-government groups are bending to Washington’s will. Mubarak also called on Syria to push Lebanese politicians to follow through with the election, saying it was “illogical” for the country to go without a president for so long. “I ask Syria, with its influence, to intervene so that the Parliament meets and elects a president.”[/rquoter]
Sarkozy has definitely been much more aligned with Bush foreign policy than his predecessor. Sarkozy is a member of the left wing in France, and this is to be expected. Though, Le Figaro (one of Frances credible newspapers) has accused Sarkozy of being a high level Mossad agent, but I do not understand how that would work.
Even before Sarkozy, France had taken a very hard line with Syria about Lebanon. This is not surprising. Ever since Rafik Hariri was assassinated 2-3 years ago, it's seemed like France has been more ticked off at Syria than we are.
why is this shocking? for god sakes france carved out lebanon FROM syria in order to make it a de facto proxy state.
From everything I've read, France whole heartedly supported the US call for UN involvement in the 'Rafik Hariri scandal' as a way to avoid creating more animosity between the two. In a void, Chirac's France couldn't have cared less about Hariri. Jacques Chirac's policy to Syria and Lebanon was very different than Sarcozy's. Chirac was always more concerned about building a 'de Gaul-esque' Francophile alliance to make France a major axis of international power. He was all about courting 'unaligned' countries that might give France more influence and Syria was one of the most natural members of that alliance. He wouldn't have annoyed Syria if it wasn't necessary for a greater goal. Otherwise he was generally very friendly towards Syria. Sarcozy seems less interested in going against the US-UK block, and more interested in a synergistic relationship. But for both of them, decisions about how to respond to Syria have not so much to do specifically with how they feel about whatever happens in Syria. For both Chirac and Sarcozy, Syria is just a lever to increase French international clout. It has nothing to do with hypertrophic gonads.
What are you talking about? I think it's plain that France was scared before, and now they are brave. That is the only reason that could explain their behavior. I'm practicing at not looking very deep into any issues.
