Paris: France has had informal contacts with Hamas, the militant Palestinian group that rules Gaza, Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said today. Hamas confirmed the contacts and said France was not the only European country to seek it out recently for talks.

The acknowledgement of secret contacts between France and a group considered terrorist by the United States and the European Union brought swift criticism from Washington.

Israel played down the revelation and insisted it has had reassurances from France which has sought friendlier ties with Israel since President Nicolas Sarkozy came to office a year ago that its policies haven t changed.

Kouchner said on Europe-1 radio that France has had contacts with Hamas leaders "for several months".

The Fatah party that dominated Palestinian politics for decades was trounced by Hamas in 2006 parliamentary elections. In June 2007,Hamas took Gaza by force, triggering a crisis among Palestinians.

Kouchner said France was not engaged in formal talks with Hamas. "These are not relations, they are contacts. We must be able to talk if we want to play a role," he said.

Kouchner made the announcement ahead of a three-day trip to the Palestinian territories and Israel this week. Sarkozy heads to the region next month.

As France s president, Sarkozy has embraced Israel, setting himself apart from predecessors who nurtured traditionally strong French relations with the Arab world. France has also sought to boost its role in the Mideast peace process under Sarkozy, and hosted an international donors conference for the Palestinians in December.

A Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip confirmed that his group had had contacts with France and, beyond that, "communications with many European officials."

Source : PTI