07/12/2000 (Agence Europe) - In answer to questions raised during his press conference on Thursday afternoon in Nice on the American fears that the future EU Rapid Reaction Force could weaken NATO, President Chirac found this "presentation somewhat of a caricature". No-one in Europe challenges the importance of the Atlantic Alliance, but it is clear that, if Europe is to intervene in conditions where the Americans are not concerned, it must have the means to do so, said Jacques Chirac. And, to the question of knowing whether EU planning operations should be conducted with SHAPE, he replied: "Defence Europe must be coordinated, but independent compared to SHAPE" and this will only strengthen the Atlantic Alliance.