Tunis Flap Prompts Departure Of French Minister
PARIS—French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he was replacing the country's foreign minister, Michèle Alliot-Marie, in an effort to draw a line under a string of embarrassments that have muddied France's diplomatic efforts since the start of uprisings in the Middle East.
In a televised address, Mr. Sarkozy said Ms. Alliot-Marie was being replaced by Alain Juppé, who was defense minister in the previous cabinet. Gérard Longuet replaces Mr. Juppé at the Defense Ministry, he said.
Ms. Alliot-Marie, 64 years old, has come under fire over the past few weeks, first for saying—at the height of the protests in Tunisia in January—that authorities there would benefit from the skill of France's riot police and then for disclosures involving her Christmas vacation in the North African country. During the holiday, Ms. Alliot-Marie used a private jet belonging to a relative of ousted Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali.
Though the minister said she had used a private jet during her Tunisian holiday, she denied any wrongdoing, saying the trip had not influenced her political position. But public perception turned against her, analysts say.
Ms. Alliot-Marie's Tunisian vacation also added to another disclosure: that French Premier François Fillon and his family had accepted a private-plane trip and other hospitality from the Egyptian government during a New Year's holiday.
The two events gave the French public the impression that France was cozying up with despotic rulers across the Middle East, instead of supporting democratic forces, analysts say.
Commenting on the Tunisian revolt that led to Mr. Ben Ali's downfall, Mr. Sarkozy said in January that France "had failed to grasp the sense of despair and the suffering" of Tunisia's population.
Fewer than a fourth of French adults approve of Mr. Sarkozy's policies, according to recent opinion polls.
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