Mandela accuses France of veto threat

The campaign to provide the next Secretary-General of the United Nations intensified yesterday with some African presidents jostling to promote their favoured candidates and Nelson Mandela accusing France of planning to veto South Africa's choice.

Ghana, Ivory Coast, Niger and Mauritania have formally nominated candidates. Mr Mandela told a Cape Town news conference that the French President, Jacques Chirac, had threatened to veto Tanzania's Salim Ahmed Salim, secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity. Reuter - Abidjan