(MENAFN- Gulf Times) US Secretary of State John Kerry broke his leg in a cycling accident in France yesterday and will fly back to the US for treatment, cutting short a European trip.
Kerry, 71, a keen cyclist, was hospitalised in the Swiss city of Geneva after the accident across the border in the French Alps, the State Department said.
Kerry had just set out on a planned ride of one of the stages of the Tour
de France, the challenging Col de la Colombiere mountain pass, a local
source said.
The top US diplomat, who had been holding talks in Switzerland on Saturday on the Iran nuclear crisis, broke his right femur in the accident in the village of Scionzier near Chamonix.
He has had to cancel both a trip to Spain and his attendance at an international meeting in Paris on the crisis over the Islamic State group, spokesman John Kirby said.
However Kirby said he planned on Tuesday to "remotely" join the Paris talks, which are aimed at reviewing the international coalition's strategy against the militants who have seized swathes of territory in brutal offensives in Iraq and Syria.
"The secretary is stable and never lost consciousness, his injury is not life-threatening, and he is expected to make a full recovery," he said in a statement.
"Given the injury is near the site of his prior hip surgery, he will return to Boston today to seek treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital with his doctor who did the prior surgery."
Kerry had asked local officials in eastern France's Haute-Savoi to organise the trip in the beautiful Alpine region.
"He had expressed a wish, a few days ago, to complete a stage of the
Tour de France passing through the Col de la Colombiere. The hill is very well-known for its difficulty, and because he loves France and cycling, he decided to climb it on his bicycle," the local source said.
"He fell accidentally, like all other cyclists have at some point."
Scionzier resident Arfaoui Aymen, 29, reported seeing "police
everywhere" following the accident, as well as a large official escort made up of Swiss police and French police and gendarmes.
Kerry was flown by helicopter to the Geneva University Hospital after the accident which occurred around 9:40am (0740 GMT).
"Paramedics and a physician were on the scene with the secretary's motorcade at the time of the accident," Kirby said.
Another State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Kerry fell after hitting a kerb.
Kerry held talks on Saturday in Geneva with his Iranian counterpart
Mohamed Javad Zarif as part of international efforts to secure a landmark nuclear deal ahead of a June 30 deadline.
The talks did not go into a second day as planned after Tehran rejected a key Western demand for site inspections.
There are heightened diplomatic moves to try to end a 12-year international standoff and put a nuclear bomb beyond Iran's reach.
The lanky Kerry has become a recognisable figure as a regular globetrotter since taking office as Secretary of State in February 2013.
During breaks from negotiations, he has often headed out of his hotel to ride his bike - which he usually brings along on his foreign missions - accompanied by a posse of security guards.
Kerry had been scheduled to leave late yesterday afternoon for Madrid.
Spain and the US were to formalise an agreement under which Spain will host a permanent force of 2,200 US Marines for deployment on missions to Africa.
"The secretary very much regrets not being able to visit Spain to meet with one of our close allies for discussions on a range of issues, as well as being unable to attend the counter-ISIL coalition ministerial meeting on Tuesday in Paris in person," Kirby said.
"The secretary plans to participate in the counter-ISIL coalition meeting remotely."
Kerry's British counterpart Philip Hammond meanwhile expressed his
concern.
"@JohnKerry sorry to hear of your #Geneva accident. Hoping you make a speedy recovery and are back on the road soon."
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