PARIS - BC-France-NATO, Urgent 1st Writethru
code:1
Urgent
Update:Recasts with Sarkozy comments.
INDEX:Defence, International, Politics
HL:Sarkozy says it's time for France to rejoin NATO military command
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PARIS -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy says the time has come for France to rejoin NATO's military command that it quit 43 years ago.
Sarkozy says France's independence won't be in question -- a clear message to critics who fear he is handing over too much national sovereignty to the alliance.
He also says France will maintain control over its nuclear arsenal.
Then-President Charles de Gaulle withdrew from the NATO military command in 1966 in a bid to assert France's independence during the Cold War.
France remains a member of NATO.
Sarkozy says new threats require greater international military co-operation.
Speaking at a conference in Paris on Wednesday, Sarkozy said: "The time has come to put an end to this situation."
