France plays down Chad war claim

Mr Sarkozy says the situation in Sudan and Chad is very complex

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said a declaration of war against foreign troops by rebels will not jeopardise an EU mission to Chad.

Anti-government rebels have declared "a state of belligerence against the French army or any other foreign forces on national territory".

They have accused French military planes of passing intelligence to the Chadian government.

Austria has also said the rebel declaration will not stop the mission.

The EU force, about half of which will be made up of French troops, is to be sent to the troubled area near the border with Sudan's Darfur region to protect refugees and aid workers.

'Complex situation'

The main rebel group, the Union of Forces for Democracy and Development (UFDD), claims to have evidence of French surveillance aircraft flying over their positions and passing their locations to the Chad government.

UFDD rebels claim France has deployed surveillance planes

They have said they will consider as enemies all members of the peacekeeping forces as they will not be able to distinguish between French and other European troops.

Abakar Tollimi, Secretary General of the UFDD, later told the AFP news agency that if French planes flew over them the rebels would attack with "powerful anti-aircraft equipment".

Mr Sarkozy insisted that the 3,500-strong force would be deployed in Chad despite the declaration of war.

"If you want to make me say that the situation in Chad and Darfur is complex, I confirm that," he told reporters.

"If we decided to send a European force... it is because there are problems, conflicts, difficulties. If there were none we would not have decided to send soldiers."

Austrian defence ministry spokesman Stefan Hirsch told AFP that the threat "does not change our determination to take part in this humanitarian mission."

"We are ready to go," he said.