France rejects Chavez offer of Libya talks

France and Britain on Thursday rejected a proposal from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to mediate talks toward a resolution of the crisis in Libya. Chavez, an ally to Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, proposed to create an international peace mission to mediate the unrest and avoid civil war, a Venezuelan minister said.

AFP

Venezuelan Information Minister Andres Izarra said Libya and the Arab League were interested in accepting the proposal, which Chavez reportedly made on Monday.

Al Jazeera reported Thursday that Kadhafi accepted Chavez's mediation offer.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe rejected Chavez's offer as insufficient, as it meant Kadhafi would remain in power.

"Any mediation that allows Kadhafi to succeed himself is obviously not welcome," Juppe said.

Juppe held talks with his British counterpart William Hague, who echoed the French minister's sentiments.

"I continue to hold the view that the speediest way to bring about an end to the bloodshed is for Colonel Kadhafi to leave."

Hague also said that France and Britain want to put forward "bold and ambitious measures" to in an emergency European Union summit on the Libyan crisis to be held next week.

Juppe stressed, however, that Arab and African governments should get involved in finding an outcome to the crisis.

"In any case it could not be only the participation of some Western countries," the French minister told journalists in Paris.

"We absolutely need the participation of some regional governments."

Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa told the AFP news agency they too were studying Chavez's proposal, but declined to give details on the regional forum's response.

Chavez and Kadhafi routinely make public condemnations of US imperialism.

Chavez wrote on his Twitter account last week, "Give another lesson to the ultra right-wing yankees! Long live a free Libya! Kadhafi is facing a civil war!"

Their ties are so close that earlier reports, which subsequently proven false, claimed Kadhafi had fled to Caracas.