DOHA, Feb 27: Qatar's foreign minister is to visit France this week to look at buying into the EADS which produces the Airbus, a French deputy minister said.

Deputy minister for foreign trade, Christine Lagarde, said: "Qatar's foreign minister will be in France next Thursday and Friday and there will be a fresh occasion to examine the possibilities for this project." Details of any involvement by Qatar and the period of any accord between the two sides would have to await the outcome of the impending negotiations, the French minister said late on Monday. Lagarde, who met the minister and Qatar's emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, said she had discussed the question of "the provision of aircraft to Qatar as well as financial questions in general".--AFP