Europeans Protest French Nuclear Tests

French President Jacques Chirac faces new criticism from fellow European leaders for his decision to resume nuclear weapons tests in the South Pacific.

Seven of the 15 European Union leaders signed a statement Sunday condemning the newly elected Chirac’s decision to relaunch a testing program under an atoll in French Polynesia.

The Socialist prime ministers of Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Greece, Denmark and Austria all endorsed the statement.