François Léotard va inspecter les 1 620 soldats français déployés pour patrouiller au Rwanda et aider les populations tutsi et hutu qui en ont besoin

Bilalian, Daniel

Epelbaum, Didier

Manier, Stéphane

Jasselin, Philippe

29 juin 1994

19940629

13:00:00

CEST

Journal de 13 heures [2:52]

François Léotard va inspecter les 1 620 soldats français déployés pour patrouiller au Rwanda et aider les populations tutsi et hutu qui en ont besoin

Les 14 chefs d'État africains francophones soutiennent la France au Rwanda, même si derrière cette unanimité apparente se glissent quelques nuances.

1994-06-29-12fr2CAB94066894.mp4

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France 2

INA

Journal télévisé

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- The Minister of Defense Mr. Léotard is currently visiting the border of Zaire and Rwanda. He inspects the French forces engaged in Operation Turquoise.
- At Goma airport in Zaire, rotations already reach 25 planes per day. This is where François Léotard's Falcon landed this morning. The Minister of Defense will inspect the 1,620 French soldiers deployed to patrol Rwanda and help the Tutsi and Hutu populations in need.
- Official reception of the Zairean, military and municipal authorities. Yesterday [June 28] 80 tons of humanitarian aid arrived here, sent by France and the International Red Cross.
- François Léotard had the situation presented to him by General Lafourcade, commander of Operation Turquoise. Around a buffet and in complete military intimacy.
- Two hours later François Léotard lost his jacket. It is 120 kilometers from Goma, in Bukavu in eastern Zaire, where a military detachment is based. From there he will visit the various French settlement points this afternoon.
- France is involved with Senegalese soldiers as its only African ally on the ground. On the occasion of the meeting of the franc zone countries in Gabon, we were therefore expecting a more general position from French-speaking African countries.
- The 14 French-speaking African heads of state support France in Rwanda. They approved of the humanitarian intervention. For Paris, it's relief. Even if behind this apparent unanimity there are some nuances.
- The final communiqué, for example, remains in very general terms when it approves the intervention and insists on the authority of the UN as a framework for African participation. Does African participation mean sending military troops on the ground?
- In any case it will take a very long time to implement, not only because we have to work out the logistics of this participation, and that is never easy in Africa. But above all because we need to know who will pay. Pascal Lissouba, President of the People's Republic of Congo: "My country is struggling with great difficulties and we do not have transport, we do not have the equipment, we do not have all the logistics to do this! So we are waiting for the United Nations to be willing to help us. The United Nations or many other countries, for example France."
- Basically it is a return to normal things since this summit in Libreville was theoretically devoted to the monetary problem and the consequences of the devaluation of the CFA franc.
- French-speaking African countries pointed out that if Paris wanted to be helped, it had to know how to be understanding with Africa. The message seems to have gotten through. This is how the best friendships are consolidated.