Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong says that allegations made about him taking drugs was part of a “witch hunt” orchestrated by the French.

The 34-year-old added, however, he would not give either the French newspaper L'Equipe which published the claims he had tested positive for blood-booster EPO in 1999 nor the laboratory involved the satisfaction of suing them.

"The paper has no proof whatsoever," Armstrong told Saturday's Het Nieuwsblad newspaper. "It is a witch hunt and a publicity exercise."

However Armstrong - who retired from the saddle following his seventh Tour de France success in 2005 - said his treatment contrasted sharply to that accorded to French climbing specialist Richard Virenque, who was embroiled in the Festina drug scandal that virtually brought the 1998 Tour de France to a standstill.

"Jean-Marie Leblanc (the outgoing head of the Tour de France) never misses an opportunity to criticize me. I am sorry but with Virenque, we have the biggest rogue of the last 50 years in terms of doping. And today he is the hero of Leblanc.

"I am not criticizing Richard, who played the media game and is a real 'showman', whereas I am not,” Armstrong said. "The Tour is angry because its history has been eclipsed by an American winning it seven times.

“Bernard Hinault (five-time winner of the Tour de France) would not have had the same problems as me because he is French," the American said.

Armstrong, who has never had a good relationship with the French fans, reiterated that while angered by the allegations made in L'Equipe he would leave it at that.

"It is the biggest dream of the laboratory (Chatenay-Malabry) and of L'Equipe that I sue them. But I am not going to fulfil their dream, sorry," said Armstrong, who added the independent inquiry set up by the sport's governing body the UCI into how the leak came about was sufficient.

Armstrong said, however, that despite earlier hints to the contrary he has no plans to return to the Tour in 2006. "The organizers can sleep easy: they will not have to look Armstrong in the eyes," he said.