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France's President Jacques Chirac, center, German chancellor Angela Merkel, right, and Egyptian President Angela Merkel chat during the two-day French-African Summit in Cannes, southeastern France, Thursday Feb.15, 2007. An era draws to a close this week when Chirac hosts his last summit of leaders from Africa, a continent where France's traditional influence is being threatened by resource-hungry China. (AP Photo/Eric Gaillard; Pool)