Taking a lead - sort of

It has taken a fair bit of time for the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, to decide as to whether he's going to boycott the opening ceremony of this summer's Olympics in Beijing.

And contrary to what headline writers here in France and around the world are saying he still hasn't actually made up his mind. But he is a little further along in the decision-making process if we're to believe his junior minister for human rights, Rama Yade.

In an interview with the French daily, Le Monde, on Saturday she said that Sarkozy had set down a checklist of three conditions that the Chinese authorities needed to meet. They had to open talks with the Dalai Lama, free political prisoners, and put an end to the violence against Tibetans and launch an investigation into recent clashes there she told the newspaper.

Yade insisted that meeting the three conditions was "indispensable" in ensuring the French president attended the opening ceremony, although she admitted that Sarkozy would only take his final decision after having consulted other European Union leaders,

So in a sense Sarkozy has almost declared his position, but not quite. He still has a "get out" clause because of course some of his European partners might not agree with his stand. And let's not forget he hasn't actually made a statement himself, even if allowing his junior minister to put his position in a newspaper interview is tantamount to doing so.

There's no denying that the French president has some potential clout to wield with Beijing - morally and politically if not necessarily economically.

France will take over the rotating presidency of the 27-state European Union at the beginning of July - one month ahead of the games. If he could persuade the rest of the EU to present a united front in boycotting the official opening unless his conditions are met, it would be a major personal political coup for him.

The Chinese will also be keen to avoid the embarrassment of having little or no political representation from the bloc and perhaps only a token presence of athletes from those countries at the opening ceremony.

Pressure groups have been lobbying Sarkozy to take the opportunity to wield a little more influence and he looks set to grab it - almost.

The Olympic flame is due to pass through Paris on Monday and already protests are expected as it makes its way along the streets of the French capital.