According to media reports, French diplomats told their Israeli counterparts that before being welcome in Paris, Sharon would have to explain recent comments made over the weekend that French Jews should emigrate to Israel to evade anti-Semitism. Israeli television cited Chirac as saying, "you are not welcome after your comments,." A spokeswoman for the French government said, according to agency reports, "a possible visit by the Israeli prime minister to Paris, for which no date has been set, will be examined only when the explanations called for have been provided"