Gerard LeFur refuses to disclose the reason as to why the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has stalled Acomplia for more than a year. Gerard LeFur is the new chief executive of Sanofi Aventis and feels the need for improvement in matters of communication.

Le Fur, the former research chief at Sanofi who took over this month as CEO, offered the Wall Street Journal the curious explanation that disclosing the issues that are still keeping Acomplia off the market in the U.S. would risk the company's relationship with the FDA.

While the FDA refuses to comment publicly during consideration of new drug applications, pharmaceutical companies often provide information as to the nature and difficulty of the issues they are discussing with the agency -- particularly when the process has dragged on well into a second year.

Le Fur and Hanspeter Spek, Sanofi's head of pharmaceutical operations who has been the company's point person in brushing aside questions about the FDA and Acomplia, will get their next chance to decline to comment at Sanofi's 2006 earnings conference Feb. 13.

News is available for the analysts in the regard to the sale of Acomplia in Europe. The diet pill Acomplia has been available for nearly six months or even more in European Union countries.