French President Jacques Chirac called Friday for the establishment of a World Bank fund to pay the wages of Palestinian officials, his office said Friday after he met with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.
France will raise the issue during talks May 9 with the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and Russia, Chirac spokesman said, according to the AP. France believes aid "must be maintained for humanitarian reasons, as well as for political reasons," Chirac conveyed. "And it will push for this continuance (of aid) within the international community and notably within the European Union."
The French leader also urged the Hamas-led government to meet international demands to recognize Israel's right to exist and renounce violence.
