“Today a war in Iraq would risk not only victimizing a people already sorely tried by the embargo, but also destabilizing the entire Middle East and fuelling international terrorism. We should also bear in mind that the conflict would not only have honourable motivations, but also fearful economic interests, such as the seizure of oil wells”. So said Archbishop Jean-Pierre Ricard, president of the French Episcopal Conference, in a press conference held on the occasion of the episcopal assembly in Lourdes (3-9 November). “A war he added would be acceptable if the expected results would really justify such an intervention”. During the assembly discussion also focused on the possible enlargement of Europe to Turkey, in the light of the implications it might have for Christian-Islamic dialogue.
