Old war allies make peace

2004-06-03 11:58

Paris - French President Jacques Chirac and US President George W Bush aren't quite kissing and making up, but the silent treatment is over.

And to hear both leaders tell it, there never really was a problem.

Days before Bush arrives in France to help commemorate the 60th anniversary of World War 2's D-Day, the two chiefs of state began setting the stage for a new start.

"I never was angry with the president of the United States... and I never had the feeling in my relations with him that he was angry with me," Chirac said Wednesday during a news conference.

"We had different points of view," he said, referring to the US-led military intervention in Iraq and France's leading role in opposing the war. "That's normal. Each affirms his own convictions."

Bush was equally conciliatory.

"I was never angry with the French. France is a long-time ally," Bush told the weekly magazine Paris Match, which appears on news-stands on Thursday.

"Friends can disagree," Bush said, according to Paris Match. "Jacques told it to me clearly. He didn't believe the use of force was necessary. We debated it as friends."

The facts speak differently

The facts speak differently. French fries became "freedom fries" as France-bashing mounted in the United States along with tensions between Washington and Paris.

At one point, there were fears that the trans-Atlantic alliance might be broken beyond repair.

The rift has, if anything, underscored that the long-standing allies need each other. Even US first lady Laura Bush joined in Wednesday to assure the French that her husband is a "man of the heart".

"I think the French will be with us for the reconstruction of Iraq, to help the Iraqis build a democracy, to gain freedom after the oppression of Saddam Hussein," the US first lady said in an interview with state-run France-2 television.

Sunday's commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Normandy landings that crushed Hitler's Atlantic Wall and led to the defeat of Nazi Germany is clearly seen as a chance to reconcile.

The day will be charged with symbolism. For the first time, a German leader, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, will take part in a D-Day commemoration. He will join Bush and some 15 other heads of state.

"I rejoice that on the occasion of June 6, there can be something essential," Chirac said, "that is, the strong recognition by the French, and more generally the Europeans, toward the Americans."

The American soldiers "came at a particularly dramatic moment for Europe and for France, bringing their help and their blood," the French president said.

During his speech on Sunday, Chirac will express French thanks to the allies for liberating the country from the Nazis, presidential spokesperson Catherine Colonna said. However, she added that this day of remembrance would also be an occasion for Chirac to "remind that we have a duty to be faithful to the values" of democracy, law and liberty.

- AP