ALGIERS - France's Foreign Ministry expressed surprise Wednesday about an Algerian government minister's remarks about a "Jewish lobby" being behind French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
The flap comes as Sarkozy is preparing to visit Algeria next week.
Mohamed Cherif Abbas, Algeria's minister for veterans, was quoted Monday in the daily El Khabar as saying that Sarkozy was brought to power by a "Jewish lobby that has a monopoly on French industry." Abbas also mentioned Sarkozy's "roots," an apparent reference to the French president's maternal grandfather, who was Jewish.
French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani responded Wednesday: "We are surprised about these remarks that appeared in the press, which do not correspond to the climate of confidence and cooperation in which we are preparing the president's state visit."
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