Interview conducted by Mahmoud Habboush
AMMAN -- On the eve of Bastille Day, July 14, The Jordan Times interviews French Ambassador to Jordan Jean-Michel Casa on French-Jordanian cooperation and regional developments.
JT: Can you describe the Jordanian-French relations in general terms?
Ambassador: The relations have quite a long history back to the early 1960s with the resumption of the diplomatic ties between General [Charles] de Gaulle and King Hussein... We have exceptional political relations with total understanding between the two countries regarding the problems of the region.
JT: What about French investment in the country?
Ambassador: We have huge investments made by big French companies within the process of privatisation with a total amount of investment over the last seven years around $1 billion.
JT: What about France Agency for Development?
Ambassador: We have decided recently after the meeting between President Chirac and the King to get the agency involved in providing grants and soft loans to promote major projects in the sector of urban development in water irrigation and in general the development of Jordan. The illustration of this intervention is through the taking part in the Red-Dead canal project with a contribution of $3 million, which is the quarter of all contributions.
JT: It seems the project has stalled due to the inability to fund the feasibility study.
Ambassador: As far as I know, the World Bank, which was chosen to be the coordinator of this project, is still working on it with the different parties: Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority. There may be some difficulty with the present political situation but I think the World Bank is still dedicated to promote this project. And as soon as possible they will be able to gather the amount needed [to conduct the feasibility study], which is around 12 to 15 million dollars.
JT: Speaking of water and irrigation projects, is there any particular project that you are going to embark on?
Ambassador: France has been very active in the past in water management and distribution in Greater Amman Municipality. In addition, we carried out some projects in cooperation with the Americans in water treatment such as a project in Samra.
Also, our regional mission for water and Irrigation is very active in the Jordan Valley in order to promote Jordanian agricultural products.
We are working now through France Agency for Development to repair and develop the networks of irrigation in Jordan's Southern Valley.
We have available through the France Agency for Development $20 million for different projects within the next few years.
JT: The country is in need of more tourists. What kind of cooperation do you have with Jordan to promote tourism?
Ambassador: We are working in most of the country's archaeological sites, repairing and beautifying in addition to providing the sites with signs and explanations for the tourists.
French archaeologists work in the main sites of the country, especially in Jerash and Petra, but also other sites like the desert castles. We have worked also in sites like Iraq Al Amir.
According to us, the future of tourism in this country is not necessarily mass tourism, because it would be hard to compete with other countries which maybe have longer beaches.
The difference for Jordan is the jewels of the past such as ancient cities. The true tourism is quality tourism. There is more and more demand in our countries for quality tourism, especially the environmental aspects for instance the beautiful Wadi Rum and Wadi Araba or to spend nights in the desert. Quality tourism must be one of the objectives of this country.
Situation in Palestine
JT: What do you think of what is going on in the Palestinian territories, with the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip and the abduction of the French-Israeli citizen Corporal Gilad Shalit?
Ambassador: France has been as vocal as possible in this question and has condemned very strongly the disproportionate use of force in the reoccupied, to some extent, territory in Gaza.
We have condemned also very quickly and very strongly the arrest of Palestinian politicians ministers and deputies who have been elected.
At the same time, we have also been clear from the very beginning on the fact that terrorist attacks have to stop and rocket firing against civilians in towns and villages in Israel from Gaza have to stop. And also called for the release of the Israeli soldier abducted by activist groups.
JT: Do you call for his release as a French citizen?
Ambassador: No, of course; we call for his release because we think that the abduction of soldiers does not help at all the cause of peace. That it's not a way, especially in the present situation to improve the situation in Gaza and the rest of the region.
JT: Is France playing any role in brokering the release of this solider?
Ambassador: We always use our diplomatic capacities in order to solve any difficult situation. For example, the release of soldiers or the end of an attack or to promote ceasefires when it's possible. Those negotiations, however, are generally very discreet and not on the public scene.
Iraq
JT: Do you see the sectarian violence in Iraq coming to an end?
Ambassador: We hope it will come to an end. And we hope that all the initiatives taken by different partners in order to promote reconciliation, such as the Jordanian project of religious reconciliation. We are supporting everything that defuses this sectarian fighting.
JT: Do you think the best approach would be negotiating with insurgency groups?
Ambassador: For us violence is not a solution in Iraq. And as a lot of countries around the world, especially in the region, like Jordan, we believe that some of the groups in Iraq are terrorists and conducting pure terrorist activities against the civilian population, especially in a very sectarian way. Our position is clearly to denounce this violence and call for a political, inclusive process, which is the best way with the presence of the new government.
JT: How do you view the calls for establishing an oil stock market in the Middle East as opposed to the ones in London and New York -- a market that would deal with other currencies such as the euro besides the dollar?
Ambassador: Our vision is not fighting between operators or stock markets. On the contrary, we want to promote understanding and cooperation and more security for oil and gas deliveries and price stability. This is for the interest of all of us especially for the European countries and for countries like Jordan... As far as the currency is concerned, we are always happy to see that the use of euro is developing but it's not a question of competition against the dollar.
© Jordan Times 2006
