Chinese police to patrol Paris in summer  

法擬邀中國警察在巴黎巡邏

Chinese policemen were expected to help patrol tourist destinations in Paris this summer amid a rise in attacks and robberies targeting Chinese visitors, French sources said Tuesday.

The French police will invite 10 Chinese counterparts to patrol with them to better serve the Chinese tourists, local media has quoted French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve as saying.

In addition to patrolling, the Chinese policemen would also serve as interpreters when Chinese tourists need to communicate with local police, Cazeneuve said.

Specific arrangements are still being negotiated and will be revealed to the public soon, according to an official with the Police Liaison Section of the Chinese Embassy in France.

The proposal was put forward by the French side, the unnamed official said.

Last year, about 1.5 million Chinese visited France, spending 571 million euros ($794 million).

The number of Chinese tourists is expected to leap by 40 percent this year after France eased its visa application process.

However, the increase in Chinese tourists has brought an accompanying rise in reports of robberies and attacks against them.

Last March, a group of 23 Chinese visitors were robbed in a restaurant shortly after they arrived at Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris.

On June 14 last year, six Chinese oenology students were attacked by three drunk local men at their home in Hostens, south of France's western Gironde Province.

In addition, petty crimes, such as theft, against Chinese jumped 22 percent in Paris in 2013. Chinese visitors are thought to be targeted because of their preference for carrying cash over credit cards.

Paris, the most visited city in the world, has been suffering from increasing cases of pick-pocketing. A group of luxury retailers, including Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Hermes, fear the situation will drive their buyers to London or Milan instead.

The presence of foreign police is not uncommon in Paris streets. Uniformed Romanian police officers have patrolled Paris to help fight a growing tide of criminality among immigrant Romanians.