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American Morning

Chirac: Meetings Positive

Aired June 02, 2003 - 07:32   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Back to the diplomatic dance right now, the G8 summit in France. With a smile and a firm handshake in public, President Bush and French President Jacques Chirac displayed a united front. This at a meeting of the world's economic powers, the first time the president has been face to face with leaders who opposed him on Iraq.
Chirac had this to say about their initial meeting today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUES CHIRAC, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): I met with President Bush in a very positive manner, looking at possible solutions to the problems we are confronting and this will continue, these discussions will continue tomorrow and are in no way a source of concern or worry to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Well, tomorrow is today on Monday. Can these two leaders, so deeply divided over Iraq, put it all behind them?

Christian Malard has been covering the summit for France 3 TV.

He's live with us in Publier, France, right there along the border with Switzerland.

What's the truth out of here? Some reporters say the reconciliation is well under way. Other reports are telling us little headway has been made so far on this front.

The public image versus the private is what now?

CHRISTIAN MALARD, SENIOR FOREIGN ANALYST, FRANCE 3 TV: OK, I agree, Bill, I think, I want to speak about reconciliation. I think it's too early. I would say just it's the relationship between the two men, the two presidents, are heating up a little bit in comparison with the first picture we had of both of them yesterday. So it's heating up slowly but surely.

But there are still, as you alluded to, some bones of contention concerning Iraq. The two presidents have totally opposite visions of what should be the future of Iraq politically, economically. When we asked the question to President Chirac he said, well, I'll refer to U.N. Resolution 1443 and President Bush said when we come to make Iraq more prosperous, more healthy, when we have freed the people of Iraq, of course we'll be all agreeing together. But we know that the way to proceed is not -- they have not the same vision about the way to proceed. It's clear on this there was still a bone of contention between the two presidents. For the rest, on the fight against terrorism, it is clear there are on the same wavelength, no problem about that. On the fact that we have to grow global economy just for the rest of the world and all that, no problem at all.

Well, let's say it's a good step forward today, but it's not still the kind of relationship we used have between two American, French-American presidents together.

HEMMER: How are the French people reacting? We know in this country this is getting a lot of attention. Is it the same there throughout France and Europe?

MALARD: Well, French -- once more, Bill, you have to make the difference between the French people, the French public opinion and the French administration. There was never real hostility from the French people towards America. They were just acknowledging the fact that we had differences of approach concerning (AUDIO GAP).

HEMMER: All right, we apologize about that. We seem to have lost the microphone there from Publier, France.

Christian Malard there.

If we get it back here -- let's try you one more time, if we could, while we still have the satellite.

Yes, we lost your audio just a little bit here.

Go ahead and top of that thought about what we were talking about, the French people and their reaction.

MALARD: No, I was saying that the French people and American people really have been most of the time respecting each other. There were not that much differences between the two countries, the two populations. The matters, of course, we have is what the differences of approach concerning main political matters in the world between two administrations, the Bush administration, on the one hand, the Chirac administration on the other hand.

Today, as you said, and you were right, it's improving. It will take time before trust will be restored between the two presidents. It's a matter of trust. Remember, President Bush and his people, whom I met recently, said they really got the impression they had been betrayed by the French. They could not understand what happened to the French.

Now, they try -- it's not easy to forget. It's not easy to forgive. But it's improving today in Evian. But we have to wait a little bit more before we have really great relationships, strong relationships and confidence again between the two countries and the two presidents.

HEMMER: All right, thanks for hanging in there.

Christian Malard, France 3 TV, live in Publier, France.

MALARD: Thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Good to talk to you again, as of last week and again this week, appearing here on AMERICAN MORNING.

MALARD: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired June 2, 2003 - 07:32   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Back to the diplomatic dance right now, the G8 summit in France. With a smile and a firm handshake in public, President Bush and French President Jacques Chirac displayed a united front. This at a meeting of the world's economic powers, the first time the president has been face to face with leaders who opposed him on Iraq.
Chirac had this to say about their initial meeting today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUES CHIRAC, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): I met with President Bush in a very positive manner, looking at possible solutions to the problems we are confronting and this will continue, these discussions will continue tomorrow and are in no way a source of concern or worry to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Well, tomorrow is today on Monday. Can these two leaders, so deeply divided over Iraq, put it all behind them?

Christian Malard has been covering the summit for France 3 TV.

He's live with us in Publier, France, right there along the border with Switzerland.

What's the truth out of here? Some reporters say the reconciliation is well under way. Other reports are telling us little headway has been made so far on this front.

The public image versus the private is what now?

CHRISTIAN MALARD, SENIOR FOREIGN ANALYST, FRANCE 3 TV: OK, I agree, Bill, I think, I want to speak about reconciliation. I think it's too early. I would say just it's the relationship between the two men, the two presidents, are heating up a little bit in comparison with the first picture we had of both of them yesterday. So it's heating up slowly but surely.

But there are still, as you alluded to, some bones of contention concerning Iraq. The two presidents have totally opposite visions of what should be the future of Iraq politically, economically. When we asked the question to President Chirac he said, well, I'll refer to U.N. Resolution 1443 and President Bush said when we come to make Iraq more prosperous, more healthy, when we have freed the people of Iraq, of course we'll be all agreeing together. But we know that the way to proceed is not -- they have not the same vision about the way to proceed. It's clear on this there was still a bone of contention between the two presidents. For the rest, on the fight against terrorism, it is clear there are on the same wavelength, no problem about that. On the fact that we have to grow global economy just for the rest of the world and all that, no problem at all.

Well, let's say it's a good step forward today, but it's not still the kind of relationship we used have between two American, French-American presidents together.

HEMMER: How are the French people reacting? We know in this country this is getting a lot of attention. Is it the same there throughout France and Europe?

MALARD: Well, French -- once more, Bill, you have to make the difference between the French people, the French public opinion and the French administration. There was never real hostility from the French people towards America. They were just acknowledging the fact that we had differences of approach concerning (AUDIO GAP).

HEMMER: All right, we apologize about that. We seem to have lost the microphone there from Publier, France.

Christian Malard there.

If we get it back here -- let's try you one more time, if we could, while we still have the satellite.

Yes, we lost your audio just a little bit here.

Go ahead and top of that thought about what we were talking about, the French people and their reaction.

MALARD: No, I was saying that the French people and American people really have been most of the time respecting each other. There were not that much differences between the two countries, the two populations. The matters, of course, we have is what the differences of approach concerning main political matters in the world between two administrations, the Bush administration, on the one hand, the Chirac administration on the other hand.

Today, as you said, and you were right, it's improving. It will take time before trust will be restored between the two presidents. It's a matter of trust. Remember, President Bush and his people, whom I met recently, said they really got the impression they had been betrayed by the French. They could not understand what happened to the French.

Now, they try -- it's not easy to forget. It's not easy to forgive. But it's improving today in Evian. But we have to wait a little bit more before we have really great relationships, strong relationships and confidence again between the two countries and the two presidents.

HEMMER: All right, thanks for hanging in there.

Christian Malard, France 3 TV, live in Publier, France.

MALARD: Thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Good to talk to you again, as of last week and again this week, appearing here on AMERICAN MORNING.

MALARD: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com