French President Nicolas Sarkozy went to the Chinese Embassy in Paris to express his sadness and condolences to the victims.

Ambassador Ladsous expressed his sympathy for victims in a condolence book for foreign diplomats at the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Ladsous thought these reactions "normal between friends".

The French government sent a 13-member medical team to Guangyuan in northeast Sichuan to treat the injured in local hospitals and on the front line.

The team treated more than 400 patients over 12 days in Sichuan. Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi called the team to express his thanks for their relief work.

The French government has to date donated more than 1 million euros ($1.6 million) worth of supplies.

As the immediate relief efforts are drawing to an end, China now faces the formidable task of reconstruction.

"French architectural and engineering companies have begun to offer help to rebuild the city of Dujiangyan," the ambassador said.

The French Embassy and Sichuan authorities plan to finalize an agreement in August on rebuilding plans using experts to salvage and restore cultural sites damaged in the quake. Rebuilding of the Bai Lu Church is among the plans.

"We are also working closely with the European Chamber of Commerce in China on a seminar to be held this October for rebuilding Sichuan province," Ladsous said.