(JTA) — French President Nicolas Sarkozy has sent a letter to Benjamin Netanyahu offering close cooperation with Israel on Iran sanctions.
The letter sent over the weekend via France’s ambassador to Israel, Christophe Bigot, comes less than a week after revelations that Sarkozy called the Israeli prime minister a "liar" and said that he "cannot stand him" during a private conversation with President Obama.
The letter was uncharacteristically signed in Sarkozy’s own handwriting using the words "with friendship," the Israeli daily Yediot Acharonot reported. It is believed that Sarkozy is trying to minimize the damage over the reported exchange between him and Obama earlier this month at the G-20 summit.
Sarkozy, responding to the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog’s report on Iran’s nuclear program, condemns Iran and promises to call for harsher sanctions against Iran.
The French newspaper LeFigaro reported over the weekend that Sarkozy could come to Israel in January to clarify his statements, according to Ynet. While Sarkozy reportedly has agreed to the visit in a conversation with his former envoy to the Middle East, Valerie Hoffenberg, it has not officially been confirmed.
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