Furious Chirac hits out at 'infantile' easterners

national | miscellaneous | news report Wednesday February 19, 2003 20:19 by Iano

Jacques Chirac last night launched a furious attack on east European candidates for EU membership, saying they had behaved "recklessly" in making pro-American statements on the Iraq crisis. Ian Black in Brussels Tuesday February 18, 2003 The Guardian

Speaking at the end of the emergency Brussels summit, the French president astonished diplomats and dismayed the European commission and other governments by accusing the incoming and aspirant members of "infantile" and "dangerous" behaviour.

Letters signed by Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, with current EU members Britain, Spain, Italy, Denmark and Portugal, and by the so-called Vilnius 10 group of EU and Nato candidates were "not well-brought-up behaviour," he complained.

"They missed a good opportunity to keep quiet. When you are in the family, after all, you have more rights than when you are asking to join and knocking on the door," Mr Chirac said, warning Romania and Bulgaria that they had been particularly incautious since they were still seeking EU membership.

Mr Chirac's fury betrayed France's anxiety at the way the club it helped to found is set to change beyond recognition when it admits 10 new members next year - and anger at the distinction made by Donald Rumsfeld, the US defence secretary, who dismissed France and Germany as "old Europe" compared with the pro-American easterners.

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