FRANCE WILL NOT JOIN COALITION

AP

[Valin]

I do not dislike the French from the vulgar antipathy between neighbouring nations, but for their insolent and unfounded airs of superiority.
Horace Walpole

[JennysCool]

Bookmark this ... And check their rhetoric AFTER the victory is won.

[ewing]

there goes EuroDisney..

[Keith in Iowa]

What was that Bush said? You're either with us, or you're with the terrorists. France is now a terrorist nation. They should go to the top of the list on where we'll go after Iraq. To hell with the cheese-eaitng surrender monkeys!

[Constitutional Patriot]

I just saw a thread stating that their air craft carrier (singular, read "French navy") is in the gulf. What do we make of this in light of the current post?

[Republic of Texas]

The food might not be as good when we roll Iraq, but the result will be the same.

[Phantom Lord]

We can only hope that some terrible tragedy befalls France and they come begging to us for help and President Bush tells them NO!

[ez]

Dear France,

In the words of the Seinfeld soup Nazi...

"No oil for you!!"

W.

[Carry_Okie]

Good. That makes it clear. When we find their dirty fingers in Saddam's armoury we can show the evidence to the world.

Let's hope that multilateralism dies an appropriate, timely, and highly public death. For too long it has been a cover for accountability.

[kinghorse]

It's all about currency according to some. I cannot imagine France would benefit from the collapse of the American economy vis a vis an attack on US currency but that is exactly what the Axis of Evil in actively engaged in doing. Peg Oil dollars to euros and *voila* no more single superpower.

[Recovering_Democrat]

CANADA.COM:

LE TOUQUET, France (AP) - Despite British lobbying, French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday said he remained steadfastly opposed to war against Iraq without giving U.N. weapons inspectors as much time they need to do their work.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair came to the seaside town of Le Touquet with the primary goal of persuading Chirac to back down from his anti-war stance and support a second U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing military force against Baghdad.

But Chirac will continue to insist that inspectors be given as much time as they judge necessary.

In an interview on national television late last month, Chirac indicated he favored granting a request by the United Nation's chief inspectors for several more months to determine whether Saddam Hussein's government is hiding weapons of mass destruction.

There was no indication Tuesday that the timetable Chirac envisions for the weapons inspectors had changed.

"France is waiting to see what Colin Powell says tomorrow and what (weapons inspector Hans) Blix says on the 14th," Chirac said at a joint press conference with Blair.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, bidding for U.N. support, is set to present evidence Wednesday to the U.N. Security Council that Iraq has hidden large caches of weapons of mass destruction from international inspectors and has defied calls to disarm.

Despite their differences, both countries agree that Iraq must disarm and that the United Nations should remain the forum for deciding whether military action is undertaken, Chirac said.

Blair has been a key backer of the Bush administration's position that time is running out for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to give up weapons of mass destruction and that force may be the only way to disarm him. Britain has sent 35,000 troops to the Persian Gulf to prepare for a possible war.

Chirac, however, has been the lead advocate for a slower approach. He insists the decision on whether to go to war rests with the Security Council - not the United States.

Blair supports Bush's stance that U.N. backing might not be necessary. But his government has stressed that it would be better to win Security Council support, which means winning over France.

On an interview on France's RTL radio, British Foreign Office minister Denis MacShane said: "As a friend of France, I find it difficult to believe that France won't wind up supporting the authority of the United Nations."

On Monday, Blair told the British parliament that the United Nations could be discredited if it fails to follow through on demands that Saddam disarm.

"Show weakness now and no one will ever believe us when we try to show strength in the future," the British leader said.

Last week, eight European leaders, including Blair, wrote a statement of support for Bush that appeared in newspapers around the world, indirectly reprimanding France and Germany for mounting pressure against U.S. preparations for war. Germany has said flatly it would not participate in any military operation against Iraq.

[ladtx]

Good news. All they would do is weaken the line anyway.

[xsmommy]

calling my fave francophiles....

[Constitution Day]

Most excellent and appropriate quote!

FRegards...

[Vinnie_Vidi_Vici]

I think this is GOOD news. If they DID join, I would be very concerned about operational security.

[lavaroise]

PARIS –– British Prime Minister Tony Blair fails to persuade France to join coalition ready to take quick action against Iraq.

Losers

NA NA NA NA... NA NA NA NA ... HEY HEY ... GOOOD BYE

NA NA NA NA... NA NA NA NA ... HEY HEY ... GOOOD BYE

NA NA NA NA... NA NA NA NA ... HEY HEY ... GOOOD BYE say it again now...

[ez]

GOOD! Now we have a place Susan Sarandon, Babs, and that "Agency" jerk can move to...

[Jim Noble]

When Churchill was asked how he felt when Italy invaded France in 1940, he said,

"It seems only fair. We had them last time".

Good riddance to the soon-to-be Islamic Republic of Tours.

We're not coming back this time.

[xzins]

Who says that France was our ally during WWII?

The truth is that France caved in surprisingly fast to the Germans and then enthusiastically became Vichy France. They persecuted the Jews, they persecuted the VERY few members of the French underground, and they actively opposed us in the N. Africa campaign and in naval necessities in the Atlantic.

After WWII, when confronted with the need to oppose the Soviet Union, it was France who tipped the apple cart by telling America that our soldiers were not welcome on French soil. In Vietnam, incapable of containing a budding communist movement, the French didn't ally with America....they pulled out. Oh, Korea.....Korea was a UN action. Does anyone know what France contributed? ONE (1) Battalion and ONE (1) Naval Vessel -- they were right up there with Ethiopia and Columbia. Battalions were larger at that time -- in the neighborhood of 1000 troops -- so this isn't an attempt to impugn the 260 French who died in the Korean War. However, it does say that a nation the size of France seems suspiciously underrepresented.


When has France been our ally?

Desert Storm. That's it. I believe they had a brigade or division perform a blocking action on the western edge of Schwarzkopf's "hail Mary."

[Republic of Texas]

They need to fill up, and want to use our tankers?