EU wants Tsvangirai to head Zimbabwe government: France

PARIS (Reuters) - The European Union will only accept a Zimbabwean government headed by opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, whose country has taken over the EU presidency, said on Tuesday.

Kouchner's comments were broadcast after the African Union called in a summit for a national unity government in Zimbabwe following the widely-condemned re-election of President Robert Mugabe in a poll scarred by violence.

"The European Union will accept no government other than a government led by Mr. Tsvangirai," Kouchner told France 2 television.

"We are the French presidency. With the (European) Commission, we are clear -- the government is illegitimate if it is not led by the head of the opposition, Mr. Tsvangirai," Kouchner said, adding that the second-round ballot, which Tsvangirai pulled out of, was a "farce".

Kouchner called on the African Union to recognize Tsvangirai as the country's legitimate leader.

"The African Union should not accept anything other than the leadership of this representative of Zimbabwe's people," he said.

(Reporting by Francois Murphy and Laure Bretton)