France 15,000 UN troops for Lebanon 'excessive'

French President Jacques Chirac said on Friday that sending 15,000 United Nations peacekeeping

troops to Lebanon would be excessive.

"My feeling is that the figure that was given at the beginning of 15,000...Is a figure that is completely excessive," he told a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "I don't know who mentioned this figure but it doesn't really make sense. So what is the right number, 4,000, 5,000 or 6,000,

I don't know." (Reuters)