France has reaffirmed its commitment to the current criteria and timetable for European monetary union, brushing aside a suggestion by former president Mr Valery Giscard d'Estaing that they be eased.
"We must allow national personalities to express themselves...but this is not the opinion of the government, French Foreign Minister Mr Herve de Charette said in an interview when asked about the former president's suggestion.
The Foreign Minister said that both France and Germany remained committed to the current timetable for monetary union in 1999, as set out in the Maastricht treaty on European unity.