PARIS, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- French President Jacques Chirac on Friday told foreign diplomats that the Iraqi war which he had strongly opposed had "offered terrorism a new frontier for expansion."

    The French president made a scathing attack on the war launched in March 2003 by the United States, terming it as an "adventure."

    "As France had warned and feared, the Iraqi war has resulted in upheavals whose effects are still being felt today," said Chirac while elaborating his commitments to diplomatic corps.

    As Iraq tinters on the blink of a civil war, U.S. President George W. Bush is expected to outline a new strategy to handle the war which could include the sending of more troops to shore up the130,000 who are already on the ground.

    Chirac said that the war "had intensified divisions within communities and even threatened the integrity of Iraq. It has destabilized the whole region where each and every country at the moment fears for its security and independence."

    "It has offered terrorism a new frontier for expansion," regretted Chirac, in contrast to Bush who has always seen the war within the context of the fight against terrorism.

    Chirac also emphasized that "the highest priority at the moment is to hand back to Iraqis their entire sovereignty."