"France and the United States will continue to be loyal allies and mutually demanding," Chirac told a meeting of about 70 members of the French-American Business Council.

He cited his recent talks with his US counterpart George W. Bush earlier in June at the G8 summit in Evian, which is the first tete-a-tete between the two since trans-atlantic tensions aggravated over the US-led war on Iraq.

"We have talked frankly of our disagreement," said Chirac.

But "the French and American authorities are engaged in a relation of dialogue and confidence," he added.

The war on Iraq split Washington and Paris, which led some Americans to call to boycott French products. However, no serious disputes disturbed the trade between the two nations.

The French-American Business Council is co-chaired by Fedex chief Frederick W. Smith and Publicis CEO Maurice Levy.

Major French groups, including Lagardere, EADS, France Telecom, Schneider, Suez and Alcatel, as well as French companies Boeing, Citigroup, American Airlines, Ernst and Young and Goldman Sachs, are also members.

"The group creates strong and long-lasting ties" between the two countries, said Chirac, adding that these ties were rooted in shared values, including respect of liberty, human dignity, justice and peace.

US Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans, who attended the council's two-day meeting in Paris, was received by Chirac and French Finance Minister Francis Mer.

The French enterprises in America employ about half a million workers and the American enterprises in France hire about the same number of people.

(Xinhua News Agency June 14, 2003)