Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon has sent emissaries to Europe and the U.S. to explain his policies. Former Defense Minister Moshe Arens will meet today with U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, together with Zalman Shoval and Dore Gold. The three Israelis will also meet with members of the American National Security Council. Former Israeli Ambassador in Paris Ovadiah Sofer will meet in Paris with French President Jacques Chirac and with European Union leaders in Brussels.
\"I have a double message,\" Sofer told Arutz-7 today. \"A message of peace, on the one hand, but also a very strong message regarding Israel\'s security. Our intention is to prevent the European Union from taking unilateral initiatives, and to increase cooperation with our new government... The situation here is complex: The French government is also a national-unity one, yet we must explain the new security-oriented approach of the Israeli government, and how the policy of restraint and holding back has brought about the deterioration of the situation...\" The French government announced at the beginning of the mini-war that Sharon was not welcome to visit France because of his alleged role in the violence, but Sofer assured the listeners that this was merely a \"passing episode\" and that France has announced that it will abide by the democratic choice made by the Israeli public.
\"I have a double message,\" Sofer told Arutz-7 today. \"A message of peace, on the one hand, but also a very strong message regarding Israel\'s security. Our intention is to prevent the European Union from taking unilateral initiatives, and to increase cooperation with our new government... The situation here is complex: The French government is also a national-unity one, yet we must explain the new security-oriented approach of the Israeli government, and how the policy of restraint and holding back has brought about the deterioration of the situation...\" The French government announced at the beginning of the mini-war that Sharon was not welcome to visit France because of his alleged role in the violence, but Sofer assured the listeners that this was merely a \"passing episode\" and that France has announced that it will abide by the democratic choice made by the Israeli public.