29 November 2007
France's Foreign Ministry has expressed surprise at an Algerian government minister's remarks about a "Jewish lobby" being behind French president Nicolas Sarkozy. The comments came as Sarkozy is preparing to visit Algeria next week. Mohamed Cherif Abbas, Algeria's minister for veterans, was quoted in the ‘El Khabar’ newspaper as saying that Sarkozy was brought to power by a "Jewish lobby that has a monopoly on French industry." Abbas also mentioned Sarkozy's "roots," an apparent reference to the French president's maternal grandfather, who was Jewish.
A French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman responded by saying: "We are surprised about these remarks that appeared in the press, which do not correspond to the climate of confidence and cooperation in which we are preparing the president's state visit." She remained upbeat about the visit, however, saying it would show that relations "have progressed in many sectors."
