What was Rav Schneerson doing while in France?

A couple of Jewish bloggers have been discussing the findings in the mid-1990s of Professor Menachem Friedman of Bar Ilan University regarding the going-ons of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson זצ"ל during the time he was reported to have been in Berlin and Paris.

For those interested in reading this three part series which was published in Haaretz in 1998, check out the following link.