BRITAIN: The French President, Mr Jacques Chirac, and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, will meet today in London where they will hold a press conference that is sure to address Mr Chirac's recent comments on Iraq that run counter to Mr Blair's views.
President Chirac insisted the war in Iraq had made the world more dangerous and that the overthrow of Saddam Hussein had mobilised Islamic people across the globe, sparking an increase in terrorism.
Mr Chirac said he was "not at all sure" people could claim the world was now a safer place. Mr Blair's ally in Iraq, President Bush, has repeatedly insisted the world is now safer with Saddam no longer in power.
Mr Chirac - a strong opponent of the war - said in separate comments that Mr Blair had won nothing for supporting the war in the Gulf country.
Speaking last night on BBC2 television's Newsnight programme, Mr Chirac insisted the relationship between France and Britain remained good. He said disagreement over the war did not mean a breakdown in the relationship between the countries.
While Mr Chirac recognised it was good to put an end to Saddam's tyranny, he said the world was more dangerous because of the way it was done.
"Is the world any safer? I'm not sure," he said. "To a certain extent, Mr Saddam Hussein's departure was a positive thing, but it also provoked reactions, such as the mobilisation in a number of countries of men and women of Islam which has made the world more dangerous."
In his interview, Mr Chirac said: "There is no doubt that there has been an increase in terrorism and one of the origins of that has been the situation in Iraq. I am not at all sure that one can say the world is safer."
Mr Chirac said his view that the war would be "long, difficult and hazardous" had not changed. But he stated France would play its part in rebuilding the country. "We will be there for her reconstruction of course, to help with the police and military resources, which a state will need," he said.
But he said the way things were now he could not imagine sending French troops to Iraq.
Mr Chirac said the war had not damaged the understanding between Britain and France. "I think that it still stands even if, naturally, there are divergent points of view on certain issues," he said.
He said France and the US had shared 200 years of friendship and co-operation. That had not changed and they still worked together.
Earlier this week, Mr Blair urged Europe and the US to work together and warned Europe's leaders against mocking Washington's strategy for combating international terrorism. - (PA)