Մատչելիության հղումներ

Aznavour Predicts Defeat For French Far-Right Leader


MONTREAL (AP) - If Jean-Marie Le Pen had been France's leader in the 1920s, the country might never have known one its most popular entertainers.

Musician and actor Charles Aznavour said Wednesday his Armenian-born parents would have been prohibited from immigrating to France if a nationalist such as Le Pen had been in power.

"If Le Pen had existed at the time ... I would not have been born in France," Aznavour, 77, said at a news conference to promote an upcoming tour.

Aznavour called the support for Le Pen in last month's first round of presidential voting a "reaction" that would not be repeated in the run-off Sunday against incumbent Jacques Chirac.

"I'm not that worried because the French have always been fundamentally reasonable," said Aznavour, who performs in five languages and is one of the best-known French singers abroad.

He predicted a strong victory for Chirac.

On Tuesday night, Aznavour joined other celebrities in leading more than 1,000 people gathered across from the Eiffel Tower in singing France's national anthem, the Marseillaise, in a musical show of force against Le Pen. They stood in front of a banner that read: "Against Le Pen, Vote Chirac."
XS
SM
MD
LG