France is native soil to many mysterious theories of international relations these days, but on Monday, President Jacques Chirac took the folie to a new level. To prove France rejects anti-Semitism, Chirac announced that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon would be unwelcome in the land of liberté, égalité and fraternité.
The contretemps began on Sunday, when Sharon, speaking to visiting American Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, commented on the spreading rash of anti-Semitic incidents in France and encouraged French Jews to return to Israel "immediately." Despite Sharon's praise for France's efforts to calm its roiling tensions, Chirac and his foreign minister, Michel Barnier, took the opportunity to castigate the Jewish leader on the world stage, calling the remarks "unacceptable" and disinviting Sharon from a state visit until he had an "explanation."
We wonder several things here, but first is exactly which part of the remarks they didn't understand.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
The French Reaction
Pejmanesque links to an excellent op/ed in the Seattle Times on the French reaction to Sharon's comments regarding anti-Semitism in France.
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