"Without Polynesia, France would not be the great power it is, able to express in the family of nations an autonomous, independent and respected position," Chirac said on the latest leg of a tour of Asia and the Pacific.

"The (French) republic will not forget it," he said.

French nuclear tests in the Pacific "allowed our country to preserve its sovereignty and its independence in an increasingly dangerous world," the president said in a speech to French Polynesia's seat of govenrment.

Shortly after he was elected president in 1995, Chirac ordered the resumption of French nuclear tests in the southern Pacific which had been suspended by his predecessor Francois Mitterrand.

One year later they were permanently halted and France's Polynesian nuclear testing facilities were shut down.

The French-administered territory receives millions of euros in aid from France as part of a deal struck after the completion of nuclear testing.

Chirac arrived in Tahiti from New Caledonia late Friday to the sound of traditional drums and singing supporters for his first visit to French Polynesia since he came to power in 1995.

A march and rally were planned Saturday by the veterans of Mururoa, fearful of the health consequences of nuclear testing in their area.

In an interview published Friday by the Tahiti News, Chirac also offered assurances that, based on a study by the International Atomic Energy Agency, "there will be no effect, either in the short- or long-term on health... and no worrying repercussions for the environment".

Still, as a precaution, "France has decided to continue to surveillance of the radiological and geomechanical status of the atolls, to be complemented by annual monitoring campaigns," the results of which will be made public.

SPACE.WIRE