Chirac comments after French businessman speaks English at EU Summit скачать в хорошем качестве

Chirac comments after French businessman speaks English at EU Summit

(24 Mar 2006) SHOTLIST 1.Press conference set-up 2.SOUNDBITE: (French) Jacques Chirac, President of France: "Because of this we were all aware of the necessity to have an energy policy. This was a very important step in the construction of dynamic and organised Europe. Today, the Council launched an ambitious strategy in favour of a reliable, competitive and durable energy for Europe." 4.Cutaway journalists 5.SOUNDBITE: (French) Jacques Chirac, President of France: "Yesterday there was violence that was intolerable and unacceptable. Some vandals joined the demonstrations and they committed unacceptable crimes against people and property. I asked the government that those vandals, who had nothing to do with the demonstrators, should be pursued and severely punished because their actions were unacceptable." 6.Cutaway journalists 7. SOUNDBITE: (French) Jacques Chirac, President of France: "This is not only in the national interest but also in the cultural interest and in the interest of the dialogue between cultures. We will not create tomorrow's world based on one language or one culture. That would be a dramatic regression. Regarding ongoing efforts - such as those within the EU to overcome the difficulty of retaining languages in their place - I was profoundly shocked to see a Frenchman express himself in English at the Council table. It is why the French delegation and myself stood up and left, and that's the only reason." 8. People leaving press conference STORYLINE President Jacques Chirac stood up for the embattled French language on Friday, unapologetic for walking out of a EU summit meeting when a Frenchman spoke, of all languages, English. "This is not only in the national interest but also in the cultural interest and in the interest of the dialogue between cultures," he said. On Thursday, Chirac and two top ministers briefly left a summit meeting of the 25 EU leaders when French business executive Ernest-Antoine Seilliere announced that he would speak in English, the language of business. Together with Finance Minister Thierry Breton and Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy, Chirac promptly quit the room and returned only after Seilliere, the head of the UNICE business lobby, stopped speaking. Even in a globalised world where the English language rules, there would still be a need for French, Chirac claimed. British Prime Minister Tony Blair sidestepped the issue. The EU has grown from an original six members, of which three spoke French, to 25 now, many of whom increasingly use English. Questions at the EU press briefings used to be exclusively French, but now English dominates. Chirac also mentioned that it was necessary for the EU to have a coordinated energy policy and condemned the violence in the Paris demonstrations, saying: "some vandals joined the demonstrations and they committed unacceptable crimes against people and property." The French president said he had called upon the government to pursue and punish the perpetrators. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...