USA: WASHINGTON: FRENCH PRIME MINISTER LIONEL JOSPIN VISIT (2)

Описание: (18 Jun 1998) English/Nat

The French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin signalled his nation's willingness, along with the United States, to consider a warming of relations with Iran.

Jospin was in Washington D-C on Thursday during a three day visit to the U-S.

He met political leaders in Congress and is scheduled to meet later with President Clinton at the White House.

The French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin met the Speaker of the House of Representatives on Thursday during a hectic schedule on Capitol Hill.

France and the U-S have not always seen eye-to-eye on issues of foreign affairs, notably the 1996 nuclear tests by France in the Mururoa Atoll.

But this tour is a chance for them to iron out their differences.

Jospin signalled that both France and the U-S were encouraged by recent changes in the government of Iran.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"As far as Iran is concerned I think like Speaker Gingrich that there is positive evolution with the election of the new president. Some change in the attitude internally give hope that Iran can progressively join the international community as an honest partner but we will have to be careful of course mainly about the possibility of some weapons so we follow carefully this situation."
SUPER CAPTION: Lionel Jospin, French Prime Minister

Jospin was accompanied in Washington by his wife, Sylviane, and members of his government, including Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine and Finance Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

He also met an array of House and Senate members, including the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who were keen to hear Jospin's views on a number of issues.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"It's an honour to have you here, we are anxious to hear your words, we are anxious to explore with you issues where our countries have common purposes and some places where we have differences such as how we deal with Bosnia, Kosovo and Iran."
SUPER CAPTION: (English) Senator Gordon Smith (Republican-Oregon), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Jospin will later meet with President Clinton.

They are expected to discuss a range of issues, including the Asian economic situation, the future of U-N sanctions on Iraq and the brewing crisis in the Balkans.

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