‘Sarkozy to consult EU on Olympic ceremony boycott’

Sarkozy's suggestion that he could boycott the Olympic opening over the situation in Tibet helped fan anti-French sentiment in China in recent days, largely prompted by pro-Tibet protests during the Olympic torch relay in Paris.

Sarkozy has sought to soothe the tensions, sending a letter to a disabled Chinese athlete attacked during the torch relay and sending senior officials to China.

Former Premier Jean-Pierre Raffarin, No 2 in Sarkozy's ruling conservative party UMP, is heading to Beijing on Wednesday to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao -- and will assure him of the "continuity" in Franco-Chinese relations, Raffarin was quoted as saying in the daily Le Parisien.

The president wants the decision to be "coherent" with his position as president of the 27-member European Union. France will hold the rotating EU presidency during the second half of this year, including during the Olympics in August.

Other European countries remain divided on the boycott idea. "The message is clear: France's policy towards China is not changing," Raffarin was quoted as saying. He said he planned to bring Hu a biography of Gen. Charles de Gaulle, who laid out France's China policy in the 1964, according to Le Parisien.

Raffarin also called Paris City Hall's move on Monday to award honorary citizenship to Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama "inopportune", the paper said.

China's Foreign Ministry criticised the gesture. But China's leadership signaled on Tuesday that it was ready to put an end to the protests that have swept the country, singling out France and high-profile French retailer Carrefour.