Attack on Chinese students 'damages France's image'

French Agriculture Minister Stephane Le Foll on Sunday denounced the violent attack on Chinese students in southwest France, saying that the country's image was tarnished by the xenophobic act.

"It is an unspeakable act. It is the image of France that is damaged with the xenophobic attitudes," said Le Foll at the inauguration of the Vinexpo in Bordeaux, one of the world's biggest wine fairs.

He also urged to bring the perpetrators to justice as soon as possible.

After the ceremony, Le Foll met with two representatives from the Chinese embassy in Paris.

Also at the Vinexpo, Alain Juppe, Bordeaux mayor and former French prime minister, condemned the attack as an intolerable vicious assault.

Three drunk local men attacked six Chinese oenology students on Friday night at their home in Hostens, south of western Gironde Province.

A female student was seriously injured in the face by a glass bottle and has been sent to a hospital in Bordeaux for further treatment.

Three of the alleged attackers have been detained.