[A-List] Contra Iran: France's Sarkozy Signs Nuclear, Military Deals With UAE

["Tony B." <tal1@xxxxxxxxx>]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Rick Rozoff
To: Stop NATO
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2008 11:02 PM
Subject: [stopnato] Contra Iran: France's Sarkozy Signs Nuclear, Military 
Deals With UAE


http://news.monstersandcritics.com/europe/news/article_1386818.php/France_and_Emirates_sign_key_nuclear_military_deals__Roundup_

Deutsche Presse-Agentur
January 15, 2008

France and Emirates sign key nuclear, military deals

-Under the defence agreement, Sarkozy signed a
memorandum of understanding on establishing a
permanent French naval base in the port city of Abu
Dhabi....
-Sarkozy's UAE visit is the third and final leg of his
Gulf tour, which had previously taken him to Saudi
Arabia and Qatar....Sarkozy [said] that Arab countries
should not be banned from using nuclear power for
peaceful purposes.
The president predicted that 'in 40 years from now
there will be no oil left and in 100 years no more
gas,' and so nuclear power, in his view, will replace
both resources.

Abu Dhabi - French President Nicolas Sarkozy sealed a
key deal for a civil nuclear project in the United
Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday afternoon, in addition
to inking several cooperation agreements in the
military and traditional energy fields.

'This (nuclear project) deal does not contradict the
commitment of the Emirates to work with the countries
of the Gulf Cooperation Council in the area of
peaceful nuclear power use; this is an addition to our
efforts in this area,' Emirates Foreign Minister
Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed al-Nahyan told the press
after striking the deal with his French counterpart
Herve Morin.

Al-Nahyan added that the Emirates are currently
immersed in high-level negotiations with the United
States, Russia, Germany, China, Japan, South Korea and
the United Kingdom, over its anticipated civil nuclear
programme and its draft policy.

'We are in preparations to seek similar direct
consultation with the International Atomic Energy
Agency,' added the minister.

The Emirates' official news agency WAM said that the
pair also signed a defence cooperation deal in Abu
Dhabi's Musharraf Palace.

Under this defence agreement, Sarkozy signed a
memorandum of understanding on establishing a
permanent French naval base in the port city of Abu
Dhabi, Arab broadcaster al-Jazeera said citing unnamed
French sources.

This deal also secures long-term bilateral relations
between Paris and Abu Dhabi in the military sector.

Sarkozy's UAE visit is the third and final leg of his
Gulf tour, which had previously taken him to Saudi
Arabia and Qatar.

Before leaving Qatar, Sarkozy had told the Arab
television broadcaster al-Jazeera that Arab countries
should not be banned from using nuclear power for
peaceful purposes.

The president predicted that 'in 40 years from now
there will be no oil left and in 100 years no more
gas,' and so nuclear power, in his view, will replace
both resources.

'It is the energy of the future,' he told the press.

The French president had discussed in Riyadh and Doha
cooperation deals worth some 40 billion euros (59.4
billion dollars), most of which are expected to be
sealed in the next few months, according to pan-Arab
newspaper al-Hayat.

France and Qatar also signed protocols managing their
cooperation in the energy sectors - traditional,
renewable and nuclear.

Sarkozy, accompanied by the heads of top French firms,
including Areva Transmission and Distribution and oil
company Total, had already inked energy agreements
that include transporting electrical equipment worth
up to 500 million euros to Qatar, which is flush with
cash and investment opportunities, and abundant in
oil.

In the UAE, Sarkozy's visit also extended France-UAE
economic, education and cultural ties and saw the
signing of three memorandums of understanding in the
fields of transportation, education and protection of
intellectual property.

French ambassador to Abu Dhabi Patrice Paoli had
earlier told the country's official news agency that
Sarkozy's visit was 'important and will translate
mutual intentions and commitments' between the two
countries in many fields.

In addition to the commercial, military and civil
deals, rounding off his visit to the Emirates, the
president held talks with the head of the state Sheikh
Khalifah Bin Zayed al-Nahyan regarding regional issues
of concern, including the Lebanese political standoff
and the controversial Iranian nuclear programme.

During the first leg of his tour in Saudi Arabia,
Sarkozy had signed four bilateral agreements covering
the areas of oil and gas, political cooperation,
investment, and education and vocational training.

Before leaving Riyadh, Sarkozy criticized the high
price of oil, currently hovering at around 100 dollars
a barrel. His comments echoed similar sentiments
expressed by US President George W Bush, also
currently on a Mideast tour.

'When the price of oil increases three-fold in four
years to reach 100 dollars per barrel, I feel
perturbed about the nature of such increases,' said
Sarkozy, who questioned the effects of the rocketing
cost on purchasing power and on poorer nations with a
shortage of alternative energy resources.

'We believe that the realistic price for oil should be
70 dollars,' he added.

His statements sparked a reaction from Qatari Energy
Minister Abdullah Bin Hamad al-Attiyah, who said that
the rise to the 100- dollar mark was a fleeting
development connected to fluctuations and traffic in
the market.

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