DHAKA: France will not accept the proliferation of nuclear arms, president Francois Hollande said on Sunday after arriving in Israel for a visit expected to focus on Iran’s controversial nuclear drive.

‘France will not tolerate nuclear proliferation,’ he said in a speech on the red carpet shortly after landing at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, reports The Straits Times.

‘As long as we are not certain that Iran has decided to give up on nuclear weapons, we will continue with all our demands and with sanctions.’

Israel and Western powers suspect Iran’s uranium enrichment programme is part of a covert drive to acquire a nuclear weapons capability, an allegation Teheran vehemently denies.

BDST: 2130 HRS, NOV 17, 2013
RoR/JCK