Downing Street has refused to give a commitment that the UK would try to block a visit to France by Robert Mugabe.

The Zimbabwean president is currently the subject of EU sanctions including a travel ban but that is due to expire in mid-February.

To be personally invited by the president of France is outrageous Michael Ancram Shadow foreign secretary

Next Monday the issue will come up for discussion at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

Speaking during Prime Minister's Questions, Tony Blair said the government stood behind travel restrictions on the Zimbabwe president.

The prime minister's spokesman said another set of sanctions would have to be agreed unanimously and the French had yet to submit a proposal over their planned Paris summit.

"This is a live issue. It will obviously be discussed on Monday. There's been no formal proposal yet from the French government and I'm not going to pre-empt our government's position," said the spokesman.

Discussions

Yves Charpentier, head of press at the French Embassy in London, confirmed that France was considering inviting President Mugabe to the summit, but stressed: "Nothing has been decided yet.

"We will be discussing this among the EU members at next week's meeting."

But the Tories demanded to know whether the UK had approved a visit to France by Mr Mugabe at the invitation of Jacques Chirac.

Mr Blair said: "We've made it clear that we support the sanctions in place against Zimbabwe."

Hypocrisy

The Foreign Office earlier said it had had no request to waive an EU imposed travel ban on Mr Mugabe.

The summit was a matter for the French authorities, Downing Street said.

To allow Mr Mugabe to strut his stuff in Paris would be absolutely unacceptable Menzies Campbell Lib Dem foreign affairs

International Development Secretary Clare Short has already told MPs she believed it would be "disgraceful" if Mr Chirac invited Mr Mugabe to a Franco-African summit on 19 February.

Conservative foreign affairs spokesman Michael Ancram said it was "hypocrisy of the highest order" for Mr Chirac to invite Mugabe when EU sanctions were supposed to ban travel within the union by Zimbabwe's rulers.

"President Chirac is well aware not only of the dire situation in Zimbabwe but that there are travel restrictions in force," said Mr Ancram.

Strut

He stressed: "No Franco-African summit can be exempt from the EU sanctions.

"It is bad enough that Mugabe and his thugs can attend UN-sponsored meetings in Europe, but to be personally invited by the president of France is outrageous.

"While it may not be intentional, this can only be interpreted as condoning genocide by starvation, ethnic cleansing, murder, rape and the destruction of the rule of law."

Menzies Campbell MP, Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman, said Mr Mugabe should not be welcomed anywhere in the EU.

"To allow Mr Mugabe to strut his stuff in Paris would be absolutely unacceptable," said Mr Campbell.

"At a time when his country is in freefall, when millions are facing starvation, and when human rights are systematically flouted, there should be no welcome for Mr Mugabe anywhere in the European Union."

Conservatives sources say that any exemption to the EU travel ban requires unanimity among nation states, implying Britain must have agreed, if the visit is approved.