France today refrained from any official comment on Israel’s decision to annex the Golan Heights but political circles expressed “regret,” saying the move “will not help” the search for a global peace.
Official spokesmen refused to react, saying that the government and President Francois Mitterrand are still studying the matter and its implications. According to the unofficial political sources, however, a statement of “regret” and possibly even “condemnation” can be expected during the coming days. Foreign Minister Claude Cheysson, who is due to pay an official visit to Egypt next week, believes the issue will be raised there.
Cheysson is due to meet Egypt’s President, Hosni Mubarak, and confer at length with Foreign Minister Kamal Hassan Ali. Both the French and the Egyptians have in the past opposed any Israeli annexations or changes of the international borders without prior consultations with the interested parties.
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