Sarkozy calls Netanyahu ‘liar’

Lost in Translation?

Microphones accidently left on after G20 meeting pick up private conversation between US, French presidents. Sarkozy admits he ‘can’t stand’ Israeli premier. Obama: You’re fed up with him? I have to deal with him every day!

French President Nicolas Sarkozy reportedly told US President 
Barack Obama that he could not "stand" Prime Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu and that he thinks the Israeli premier "is a liar."

According to a Monday report in the French website "Arret sur 
Images," after facing reporters for a G20 press conference on 
Thursday, the two presidents retired to a private room, to 
further discuss the matters of the day.

The conversation apparently began with President Obama criticizing 
Sarkozy for not having warned him that France would be voting 
in favor of the Palestinian membership bid in UNESCO despite 
Washington's strong objection to the move.

The conversation then drifted to Netanyahu, at which time 
Sarkozy declared: "I cannot stand him. He is a liar." According 
to the report, Obama replied: "You're fed up with him, but I 
have to deal with him every day!"

The remark was naturally meant to be said in confidence, but 
the two leaders' microphones were accidently left on, making 
the would-be private comment embarrassingly public.

The communication faux pas went unnoticed for several minutes, 
during which the conversation between the two heads of state – 
which quickly reverted to other matters – was all but open 
to members the press, who were still in possession of headsets 
provided by the Elysée for the sake of simultaneous translation 
during the G20 press conference.

 

"By the time the (media) services at the Elysée realize it, 
it was on for at least three minutes," one journalist told 
the website. Still, he said that reporters "did not have a 
chance to take advantage of this fluke."

The surprising lack of coverage may be explained by a report 
alleging that journalists present at the event were requested 
to sign an agreement to keep mum on the embarrassing comments. 
A Reuters reporter was among the journalists present and can 
confirm the veracity of the comments.

A member of the media confirmed Monday that "there were discussions 
between journalists and they agreed not to publish the comments 
due to the sensitivity of the issue."

He added that while it was annoying to have to refrain from 
publishing the information, the journalists are subject to 
precise rules of conduct.

www.ynetnews.com, 07.11.2011