France, UK urge credit crisis warnings

LONDON, England (CNN) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British leader Gordon Brown Thursday called for an early warning system to alert international markets to further turmoil in the wake of recent banking scandals fueled by the U.S. credit crunch.

The two leaders, meeting in London, said institutions like the International Monetary Fund should be reformed to provide warnings of future risks to the global economy.

Both countries have suffered from recent major financial scandals.

The British government had to nationalize struggling mortgage lender Northern Rock last month while French investigators are probing trading losses of more than $7.2 billion at banking giant Societe Generale.

Brown and Sarkozy also unveiled plans Thursday to promote worldwide nuclear disarmament, but will encourage countries to use nuclear power as a means of tackling the energy crisis.

UK Prime Minister Brown said he was concerned by the "proliferation" of countries who have nuclear weaponry, including Iran.

"I worry about countries like Iran having nuclear weapons," he told a joint press conference in London on the second day of Sarkozy's two-day state visit to Britain.

"We need to help countries get civil nuclear power, but they need to renounce the idea of getting nuclear weapons."

Brown and Sarkozy earlier met at Downing Street, where they discussed plans to replace Britain's raft of ageing nuclear power plants.

France produces 80 percent of its electricity from nuclear power, compared with 20 percent in Britain.

According to CNN's European Political Editor Robin Oakley, co-operation on a nuclear deal will be easy for France but could prove more problematic for Britain, where the energy source remains unpopular with the public.
Read how the Sarkozys charmed Britain

Brown plans to host a conference later this year for non-nuclear countries who aim to develop civilian atomic power programs.

At the afternoon conference, Sarkozy and Brown put on a united front as they revealed plans to strengthen ties between the two countries "at the heart of Europe."

"It is not simply a matter of a one-night stand. I believe that we can go in to next-day breakfast as well," Sarkozy said.

They insisted that France and Britain were "on the same wavelength" in areas such as a global approach to the economy, the environment and climate change, security and the need to "bring rich and poor countries together."

They voiced a desire to implement social and economic development plans in Africa ahead of the 2010 World Cup football tournament in South Africa, and to continue attempts to prevent the Taliban from returning to power in Afghanistan.

Brown reiterated that Britain would not be boycotting the Beijing Olympics this year, while European Union president Sarkozy said he reserved the right to make a decision later.

Sarkozy and his glamorous wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy arrived at the British leader's official residence late morning local time.

The previous day, the French first lady had threatened to overshadow her husband in a succession of demure Christian Dior costumes as the couple attended a royal dinner given in their honor by the queen.

Earlier in the day, Sarkozy won a standing ovation from British lawmakers following a fiery speech calling not just for entente cordiale but for a new "fraternite" or brotherhood between the two nations.

Sarkozy told parliament that his government was willing to commit more troops to the war in Afghanistan, calling the fight there "crucial" to the NATO alliance.

"We cannot afford to lose Afghanistan," he said. "We cannot afford to see the Taliban and al Qaeda returning to Kabul. Whatever the cost, however difficult the victory, we cannot afford it. We must win."

U.S. and NATO forces are battling a resurgent Taliban and its al Qaeda allies in Afghanistan nearly seven years after al Qaeda's 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

The United States has pushed for a greater allied combat presence in the country, and Afghanistan is expected to top the agenda when NATO heads of state gather in Romania in early April. E-mail to a friend

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