FRANCE: President Jacques Chirac yesterday threatened Iran with action by the United Nations Security Council if the Islamic republic continues to move towards uranium enrichment.
mr Chirac spoke in his annual address to the ambassadors' conference, traditionally a summary of the president's world view.
He gave the Iranian nuclear question top priority, placing it at the beginning of his speech.
"The use of civilian nuclear energy, which is perfectly legitimate, must not serve as a pretext for pursuing activities that could actually be aimed at building up a military nuclear arsenal," Mr Chirac said.
"The International Atomic Energy Agency showed that Iran was conducting a secret nuclear programme in the past."
Earlier this month, France, Britain and Germany failed to persuade Tehran to renounce uranium enrichment in exchange for political, economic and technological incentives offered by the European Union.
Cyrus Nasseri, Iran's negotiator at the IAEA, dismissed the EU offer as "lollipops".
Mr Chirac nonetheless asked Iran "to choose the path of co-operation and confidence by carefully examining this offer and resuming their commitment to suspend activities related to the production of fissile materials as the Paris agreement demands."
The Paris agreement of November 15th, 2004, said the EU recognised "that this suspension is a voluntary confidence-building measure and not a legal obligation".
If Iran did not "restore co-operation and confidence", Mr Chirac said, "the Security Council will have no choice but to take up the issue." The other warning in Mr Chirac's speech was directed at Turkey. "Following its unilateral statement on Cyprus, Turkey must provide the 25-member EU with clarification and assurances of its determination to fully live up to its commitments," he said.
On July 29th, Ankara announced that its acceptance of the protocol on extending the customs union to new EU members in no way signified recognition of the Greek Cypriot government. Prime Minister Dominque de Villepin cast doubt on negotiations on Turkish accession, which are due to begin in five weeks.
"It seems inconceivable that any kind of negotiation process can begin with a country that does not recognise every member of the EU," he said.
In the past, Mr Chirac supported negotiations with Turkey even when his right-wing majority opposed EU membership for Ankara. He now appears to be having second thoughts. "The opening of negotiations with Turkey is only the start of a long and difficult road, of uncertain outcome..." he said.
In previous years, Mr Chirac used his speech to France's ambassadors to criticise the United States. But quibbles with Washington over Iraq, the Middle East peace process, enlargement of the UN Security Council and the role of treaties such as the Kyoto Protocol were so subtly stated yesterday as to be unnoticeable.
Following Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's official visit to Paris last month, France is in a rare honeymoon stage with Israel. Mr Chirac praised "the courageous Israeli decision to withdraw from Gaza", adding: "France commends the exemplary way in which this first step has been carried out."
Despite France's vote against the European constitutional treaty on May 29th, Mr Chirac has clearly not abandoned his dreams of European power, though he admitted the need for "a new European impetus".
There was also a warning for the British prime minister, Tony Blair, who now holds the presidency of the EU.
In the current debate on Europe's future, Mr Chirac said: "I will be strongly reaffirming the French vision of a political, ambitious, social Europe rooted in solidarity... Europe is not destined to become a vast free trade area diluted in the globalised economy... Europe is not a race to the bottom as regards taxes and social benefits. Europe stands for common rules to harmonise social legislation upwards."
Britain has clashed with France over the EU services directive and the working time directive. Mr Chirac warned that "France will be very vigilant" on both pieces of legislation.