PRESIDENT Jacques Chirac reiterated yesterday that French nuclear tests in the South Pacific would be finished "before the end of February" and would lead to the signing of a nuclear free Pacific treaty "before the end of the first half of the year".
Originally the nuclear tests, at the Mururoa and Fangataufa atolls in the South Pacific, were scheduled to number eight and to be finished by the end of May.
Their number has since been reduced to six or seven - it is still not entirely clear how many there will be - while officials have said they will be finished by the end of February.
The first test took place on September 5th. Other tests were held on October 2nd, October 27th, November 21st and December 27th.
Meanwhile, Mr Chirac and the Prime Minister, Mr Alain Juppe, suffered big drops in public confidence after the nationwide social unrest, according to the latest SOFRFS/Figaro poll due to appear today.
Confidence in Mr Chirac dropped by 4 per cent and in Mr Juppe by 6 per cent, according to the poll in which 1,000 people were questioned, taken at the end of December for the weekly magazine.
Only 35 per cent gave Mr Chirac the thumbs up - 63 per cent were against him. The set back for Mr Juppe was even starker, with 31 per cent giving him their confidence and 67 per cent against.