Last year's US-led invasion of Iraq and ousting of President Saddam Hussein has made the world more dangerous, French President Jacques Chirac said ahead of his state visit to Britain.
The French leader's interview with the BBC, excerpts of which were aired this morning, indicate little chance of success for British Prime Minister Tony Blair's efforts to mend Franco-American ties damaged by the Iraq war.
President Jacques Chirac
"I'm not at all sure that one can say the world is safer," Mr Chirac said. "There is no doubt there has been an increase in terrorism.
"To a certain extent Saddam Hussein's departure was a positive thing but it also provoked reaction such as the mobilisation in a number of countries of men and women of Islam which has made the world more dangerous."
The full interview with the BBC is to be aired this evening as Mr Chirac prepares to fly to Britain tomorrow to meet Mr Blair, Queen Elizabeth and business leaders.
The business in intended to celebrate 100 years of Entente Cordiale- an agreement that brought about French-British cooperation after a history of rivalry.
Mr Chirac, whose strong opposition to the war prompted US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to dismiss France as part of "Old Europe" has questioned what Mr Blair has gained from his unstinting support of the invasion.
In a newspaper interview, Mr Chirac said he had urged Britain before the invasion to press US President George W. Bush to revive the Middle East peace process in return for London's support for the war.
"Well, Britain gave its support but I did not see much in return," Mr Chirac was quoted as saying in the London Times. "I am not sure that it is in the nature of our American friends at the moment to return favours systematically."
The French leader questioned whether Britain could act as a bridge between the United States and Europe to help heal the transatlantic rift. "I am not sure with America as it is these days that it would be easy for someone, even the British, to be an honest broker," he said.
Mr Blair called on Monday for Europe and the United States to bury their differences over Iraq and focus on global challenges. "It is not a sensible or intelligent response for us in Europe to ridicule American arguments and parody their political leadership," he said in a major foreign policy speech.