Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan today telephoned his French counterpart Hubert Vedrine to exchange views with him on Iraq, the Middle East issue and other issues. Tang made positive comments on the sound co-operation between China and France on international and regional hot issues and stressed China's willingness to strengthen consultations with France. Mr. Vedrine agreed with Tang's comments, saying that France appreciates the unique role that China plays in the issue of Iraq, and that it is willing to strengthen coordination with China. The two foreign ministers maintained that dialogues and negotiations are the right way to resolve the Palestine-Israel conflict. They urged Israel and Palestine to work actively with the United Nations and the international community in their mediation efforts, so as to create a favorable atmosphere for the resumption of peace talks. The Chinese and French foreign ministers also agreed that they will make efforts to push the cooperation between the two countries in international affairs to a new level.