My favourite president of France is spending Easter in Japan - something that I did a year ago (more or less). Curiously this means that l'Escroc shares with me a love of Japan and, for that matter, of the French Riviera and French cooking. However that is about the limit of what we have in common; in particular, when it comes to politics, we differ about as much as it is possible.
L'Escroc has just had a horrible Ides of March where he has had to face the problem that being two-faced is difficult in the age of instant communications and it seems he has decided to get away from it all in the Orient. Of course Japan is charmed by l'Escroc's Japanophilia but there is no doubt that once behind closed doors the Japanese will explain just how unimpressed they are with the idea of flogging weapons to the People's Republic of China as the (completely unbiased) China Post (of Taiwan) reports in the link above - although to be fair UPI makes the same point.
The China Post article also notes that there is another item that may cause a certain amount of friction - namely the future energy project ITER which the EU/France would like to have in France but which Japan (and IIRC almost all the other funders) would prefer to have in Japan. Mind you this project is the sort of grand publically funded pork that both the Japanese and the French love to have so, not too surprisingly, neither has been willing to concede to the other and thus we taxpayers are saved from having to pay for it until they finally make up their minds. Of course if they fail to agree there is always the problem that we get two ITERs - one in Japan and one in France.
L'Escroc does seem to be a genuine Sumo fan, indeed wathching the Sumo today I noticed that when the cameras focussed on him during the bouts he was wearing glasses - something that he does not do in public normally except when trying to sell nuclear power plants to Saddam Hussein. The Japanese Prime Minister, Koizumi, was not present; if he had been I would be wondering if l?Escroc always wears glasses when trying to get nuclear deals...
Still the article has a wonderful quote from Chirac buttering up some Osaka businessmen:
"Your businesses have firmly made the choice for a future that keeps innovation and high technology at the center of your economic strategy," he said.
He said France had similarly pursued research and high value-added activities and it now hoped "to give a new gust to its durable growth."
French Durable growth? French High Technology? these sound almost as oxymoronic as French Militry Victories.
I despise l'Escroc and Vile
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