France condemns WikiLeaks publication

PARIS - France Monday became the latest country to criticise the release of secret US diplomatic cables on the WikiLeaks site, calling it an “an attack on state sovereignty”.

Government spokesman Francois Baroin said, however, that US-French relations would not be affected by the disclosures.

In one document released by the site, President Nicolas Sarkozy is described as “thin-skinned” and authoritarian.

In another, the Rafale combat aircraft sold by France to Bahrain is called “yesterday’s technology”.

Baroin said the government would not be commenting on individual revelations and comments on politicians arising from the leaks.

Daniel Cohn-Bendit, a German politician who represents a French constituency in the European parliament, told a radio station the leaks were voyeurism rather than revelations.

“Secrets? What secrets? There is no secret in there you don’t already know,” he said.