Thousands Protest War on Iraq in France

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, October 14, 2002

Thousands Protest War on Iraq in France

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Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Paris and other French cities Saturday to protest any American-led military strike on Iraq, underscoring the difficult choices facing French President Jacques Chirac and his center-right government as they try to find a compromise with the Bush administration on how to deal with Saddam Hussein.

While Saturday's protests were relatively small -- about 6,000 people in Paris -- the French public appears largely opposed to any military action against Iraq. The U.S. push for another Gulf War feeds into long-held anxieties about America's unparalleled power in the world and French perceptions of their own reduced role on the international stage, according to analysts.

Chirac has called for a tough U.N. Security Council resolution on resuming arms inspections in Iraq, but he has insisted that any threat of military force come later in a separate resolution. The administration of President Bush wants one resolution that joins a demand for a return of inspectors to Iraq with an immediate threat of military action if Baghdad fails to comply.

A compromise is likely, many analysts say, if only because Chirac would not want France left out of a key international decision by its most important strategic ally, the United States. But the anti-war sentiment here -- also displayed earlier this week in a spirited National Assembly debate -- shows the delicacy of Chirac's balancing act.

For France, the question of how best to approach Iraq is wrapped in a complex web of geopolitical interests, economic and commercial concerns, a long history of relations in the Middle East, geographic considerations, and its own volatile population mix.

Source: Agencies

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