Envoy Tries to Soothe French on U.S. Anger

PARIS — U.S. Ambassador Joe M. Rodgers tried to soothe French worries over a mounting mood of anti-French resentment in the United States with a statement Monday proclaiming that “the bonds of common values which unite us with France are too important to be put into question” by the French refusal to cooperate with the American bombing of Libya.

The statement came amid growing concern and puzzlement here over both the anti-French feelings in the United States and the huge number of cancellations by American tourists of planned visits to France. Fears of terrorist attacks have combined with the anti-French resentment to persuade Americans to stay away.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Tourism said the French government has given up trying to attract American tourists for this summer.

Celebrities May Stay Away

Organizers of the Cannes Film Festival were upset by reports that a number of American film celebrities such as directors Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg and actors Burt Reynolds, Walter Matthau and Whoopi Goldberg have canceled plans to attend the May event out of concern for their security.

Paris newspapers have prominently featured accounts of anti-French demonstrations in the United States, including photos of a Georgia bonfire destroying French goods and a smiling woman holding up a sign saying, “Burn the Arrogant Little Toads.”

In his statement, Rodgers said the United States was disappointed by the French refusal to let the American warplanes fly over France on April 14 en route to Libya.

But, Rodgers said, “I will be going to the United States in a few days for my daughter’s university graduation, and I plan to remind every American I meet, whether public official or private citizen, that the bonds of common values which unite us with France are too important to be put into question by this incident.

“The stakes are simply too high for us to allow the adversaries of democracy to use this issue to drive a deep wedge between us,” he said.

The ambassador, a political appointee who was the Republican Party’s fund-raiser in Tennessee, said that the French people supported the American raids on Libya and that the French government had often stood with the United States on many issues.

On the issue of security, Rodgers said “there is, indeed, a greater than normal security risk at the present time (for Americans in France). It would be irresponsible of us to pretend otherwise.”

“At the same time,” he said, “. . . the United States government has not and is not advising Americans to cancel visits to France, to leave France or to forgo normal activities in France.

France Doing All It Can

“I am personally convinced,” Rodgers went on, “that the government of France is doing and will continue to do everything that it can to ensure the security of all Americans and all American institutions in France.”

Although businessmen are holding back statistics for fear of making matters worse, it is obvious that many Paris hotels, restaurants and stores have been hurt badly by the absence of American customers and expect to be hurt even more in the months ahead.

The Tourism Ministry spokeswoman said that Jean Jacques Descamps, the secretary of state for tourism, had been considering leading a promotional tour to the United States in May to drum up tourist business but gave up the idea recently as pointless.

She said the atmosphere in the United States is “too emotional” to make a French bid for tourism worthwhile. “We feel that any try on our part to promote tourism at this time would be a try for nothing,” she said.

As a result, she said, the ministry intends to wait some time before launching a promotional drive. She said France has little hope of attracting tourists for this summer anyway.