PARIS, Dec 15 (Reuters) - It is unlikely that the European Union will reach a trade agreement with the Gulf Arab states, Anne-Marie Idrac, France's junior minister for trade, told Reuters on Monday.
In October she had said it might be possible to sign an agreement this year.
"We have been working on a free trade agreement between the European Union and the Gulf for 17 years. I hoped for a moment that it would be possible to get there," said Idrac, who headed state rail company SNCF before joining the government in May.
"Unfortunately it seems that we will not arrive at an agreement. If we were not able to seize the chance of the French presidency, of Nicolas Sarkozy's high profile...I think that it will be even harder now." (Editing by Keith Weir)