France: Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy sentenced to jail for corruption

When the verdict came, it reduced the Paris court to a stunned silence: Nicolas Sarkozy was guilty of corruption and influence peddling, and sentenced to three years in prison, two of them suspended. France’s president from 2007 to 2012 had played an “active role” in forging a “corruption pact” with his lawyer and a senior magistrate to obtain information on a separate investigation into political donations, the leading judge declared, and there was “serious and concurring evidence” of collaboration between the three men to break the law.

Read more at: Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy sentenced to jail for corruption | Nicolas Sarkozy | The Guardian

A tale of two Presidents: How the legal troubles of a former French president could be a blueprint for Trump's

Tale of two countries: Donald Trump is reputed not to read much, and he certainly won't want to read about the trial of Nicolas Sarkozy, the former right-wing French president.

Like Trump, Sarkozy has always loved the limelight. The French media call him a bête de scène, a political beast who craves public attention, whether good or bad.

Like Trump, he was twice divorced and then remarried to a model, Carla Bruni, in his case while he was in office as president.

Read more at: How the legal troubles of a former French president could be a blueprint for Trump's | CBC News

France: Former French President Sarkozy to stand trial for corruption and influence peddling

Ex-French president Sarkozy to stand trial for corruption, influence-peddling Nicolas Sarkozy is set to face trial on charges of corruption and influence peddling after his last appeal was rejected by France's highest court, his lawyer said Wednesday.

Read more at: 

http://www.france24.com/en/20190619-france-ex-french-president-sarkozy-trial-corruption-influence-peddling-charges

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Police raid Sarkozy’s office, home in campaign finance probe

Nicolas Sarkozy

French police searched Nicolas Sarkozy’s offices and home Tuesday as part of their probe into claims the former president was involved in illegal political campaign financing, his lawyer said.

Magistrates are investigating claims that staff for Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to the L’Oreal cosmetics empire and France’s richest woman, gave envelopes stuffed with cash to Mr. Sarkozy's aides to finance his 2007 campaign.

Around ten police officers accompanied investigating magistrate Jean-Michel Gentil on the raid on his home and on offices he has recently rented in Paris, a source close to the enquiry said.
Mr. Sarkozy’s lawyer Thierry Herzog said that the president, who was defeated in his re-election bid in May by the Socialist Francois Hollande, is currently in Canada with his family.

Read more: Police raid Sarkozy’s office, home in campaign finance probe - The Globe and Mail

Following Sarkozy and Cameron Turkey’s PM to visit Libya:

Turkey's prime minister heads to Libya on Friday, a day after the French and British leaders won a hero's welcome there for helping to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi and in the midst of a fierce battle over Gaddafi's home town.

Tayyip Erdogan, on a North African tour to assert Ankara's regional influence, will be hoping to reap political and economic dividends from Libya's new rulers for his country's help in their struggle to end Gaddafi's 42-year grip on power.

For more: Turkey’s PM to visit Libya: News24: Africa: News

Roma: a problem that won't go away for the EU

The Roma people are an ethnic group with origins in South Asia and Eastern Europe who are widely dispersed with their largest concentrated populations in Europe, especially Central and Eastern Europe. Also there are more recent diaspora populations in the Americas and, to a lesser extent, in North Africa and the Middle East..In addition there is a subgroup of the Romani people who live primarily in Central and Eastern Europe. In the EU there are an estimated 10-million Roma and nearly 90% of them live below the poverty line. Turkey which is an aspiring EU member has 2.7 million Roma living within its borders.

France's stepped-up removal of Roma migrants this summer, part of what President Sarkozy has called a crackdown on crime, has caused quite a stir in the EU. President Sarkozy says the expulsions are a matter of security and that the European Commission should come up with Europe-wide solutions rather than criticizing France. He said there had been no expulsions based on ethnicity. On the other hand President Sarkozy was unrepentant as to his actions and vowed during a EU Heads-Of-State meeting in Bruxelles to continue dismantling illegal immigrant camps.

The French policy also involves offering Roma families a financial incentive to return to Romania and Bulgaria. The row has underscored differences in Europe over how to deal with problems related to immigration, persistent unemployment and ethnic minorities, particularly at a time of economic slowdown and social hardship. Presently more than 400 camps have been dismantled in France and about 1000 Roma have already been deported to Romania and Bulgaria.

There are about 400.000 Roma of which 15000 Roma from Romania and Bulgaria in France. Even though as EU citizens they are allowed in, there is a three-month limit on people who don’t have jobs or incomes. France is enforcing that, and clamping down on the illegal camps in which the Roma live.

France is also not the first EU country deporting the Roma people: Italy also deported Roma last year, but pretty much got away with it.Some countries in the EU, such as Spain, have treated the Roma problem more humanely, investing resources to integrate the Roma economically and socially into society, instead of marginalizing and deporting them.

EU-Digest 

Sarkozy only EU country to congratulate Suriname's controversial president

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has congratulated Desi Bouterse on his election as president of Suriname. Mr Bouterse, a former army commander, stands accused of the murder of political opponents. He has also been convicted in the Netherlands, in absentia, of drug trafficking.

France is the first European country to congratulate Mr Bouterse. In a letter, Mr Sarkozy wrote that his country is open to intensive cooperation with Suriname. Mr Sarkozy is head of state of French Guiana, which is a French overseas department and shares a border with Suriname.

A Dutch Member of the European Parliament Hans van Baalen has voiced criticism at French President Nicolas Sarkozy for congratulating Mr Bouterse, and says the incoming president of Suriname should be refused entry to the European Union. The Dutch MEP told Radio Netherlands Worldwide: "It seems reasonable to me that such a person should not be allowed to travel to the EU". .


For more: Sarkozy congratulates Suriname's controversial president | Radio Netherlands Worldwide

M@C: Sarkozy all talk no action : Awaiting the Sarkozy show at Copenhagen Copenhagen climate conference - by Siegfried Mortkowitz

For the complete report from Monsters and Critics click on this link

Listening to him in the run-up to this month's UN climate conference in Copenhagen, French President Nicolas Sarkozy seems to be more in his element than the average world leader at such international conferences on global threats. In November, he stood on the steps of the Elysee Palace with Brazilian President Luiz Inacia Lula da Silva and proclaimed that the two of them had agreed on a plan to save the world from global warming. Then, trailing press releases like confetti, he traveled to Brazil and the Commonwealth summit in Trinidad and Tobago to trumpet the proposal.But this was just typically Sarkozian. As head of the European Union during the economic crisis, he convoked numerous summits, which he approached with a messiah's zeal and a tap dancer's sensitivity to his audience.

Before every G8 or G20 summit on the crisis, he loudly proclaimed his intention to save the world from bad capitalism and threatened to walk out of the meeting if it did not come up with concrete solutions. Sarkozy never walked out, and capitalism remains pretty much what it was before the crisis. Now, that same table-thumping advocacy and media awareness has accompanied Sarkozy's approach to Copenhagen.

Note EU-Digest: It's called - all talk,no action.

The Telegraph: Berlin Wall anniversary: Nicolas Sarkozy 'used pickaxe' after rushing from Paris

For the complete report from the Telegraph click on this link

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has shared his memories of the fall of the Berlin Wall, telling his Facebook fans he chipped away at the concrete slabs with a pickaxe on November 9, 1989. Mr Sarkozy posted his personal account as he headed to Berlin to join European leaders for joyous celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the collapse of the Wall. The president recounted that he traveled to Berlin from Paris on the morning of November 9 after hearing the first news reports of the mass influx of East Germans to West Berlin.Then a 34-year-old member of parliament, Mr Sarkozy was with other French politicians who headed straight for the Brandenburg gates "where an enthusiastic crowd had gathered to welcome the looming opening of the Wall". "We then headed for Checkpoint Charlie to see the eastern side of the city and finally confront this wall and I was able to take a pickaxe to it," recounted Mr Sarkozy.

NY Times: France: - Sarkozy’s Son Will Not Seek High-Profile Post

For the complete report from the NYTimes.com click on this link

France: - Sarkozy’s Son Will Not Seek High-Profile Post

Amid fierce accusations of favoritism, President Nicolas Sarkozy's son renounced his candidacy Thursday for the leadership of the organization that runs France's most important business district on the western edge of the capital. The younger Sarkozy's candidacy drew mounting criticism from both the left and within the conservatives on grounds the 23-year-old, who has not completed his law studies, was not qualified for the high-profile job. The polemic was starting to damage his powerful father whose ratings have slipped in the last two weeks, in part because of the polemic over his son.

EPAD, as the organization is known, is a quasi-governmental agency that oversees real estate and administration in the La Defense complex where 150,000 people work. The French president has big ambitions for La Defense to become an even more important European financial center, and his son's accession to a leadership position was part of the plan.

The Australian: France: Sarko nepotism row rages in France

For the complete report from The Australian click on this link

France: Sarko nepotism row rages in France The youth wing of the French Socialist Party last night launched a tongue-and-cheek campaign urging jobless youths to ask President Nicolas Sarkozy to adopt them, as a nepotism row rages over his son Jean's expected appointment to run France's top business district. The 23-year-old second-year law student and municipal councillor plans to take the helm of the EPAD agency overseeing development at La Defense, west of Paris. "This is to help young people who are struggling because it appears that it is easier to find a job when your name is Sarkozy," said Thomas Le Goff from the Socialist Party youth wing.

BBC NEWS: Sarkozy insists health is 'fine'

For the complete report from BBC NEWS click on this link

Sarkozy insists health is 'fine'

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is back at work and has declared his "health is good" after he collapsed while jogging on Sunday. His often frenetic schedule has earned him the nickname the "hyper-president". Following his release from hospital on Monday he admitted he needed to scale down on activities in the coming weeks.

Sarkozy collapses while jogging

EU-Digest

Sarkozy collapses while jogging

(AFP) France's President Nicolas Sarkozy collapsed while jogging near his weekend retreat Sunday and was rushed to hospital where officials said he was "doing well" but would remain overnight. The 54-year-old conservative president's wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy raced to his side on the back of a police motorbike after he felt faint while running in the wooded park around the Versailles Palace, a witness said.A presidential aide told AFP that Sarkozy had a problem related to his vagus nerve -- which helps the body regulate its heart rate -- but that doctors considered the problem "minor". A condition known as vasovagal syncope can reduce the heart rate and blood pressure -- particularly if the victim is dehydrated. Patients can faint but normally make a complete recovery, medical experts said. Sarkozy's office said there were no plans to cancel Sarkozy's visit on Tuesday to the Mont Saint Michel abbey in Normandy.

Yahoo: Netherlands: Germany and France jeopardize pact - by Robert Wielaard

For the complete report from Yahoo click on this link

Netherlands: Germany and France jeopardize pact - by Robert Wielaard

The Netherlands charged Tuesday that France and Germany are running their economies so differently that they are threatening the rules that underpin the stability of the euro. Dutch Finance Minister Wouter Bos said France and Germany "are sending different signals about how they regard the necessity to put public finances in order." He told reporters that it was "worrisome" that neither Berlin not Paris will acknowledge publicly that they are taking vastly different paths to return their slumping economies to growth. That, he added, was eroding confidence in the euro budget rules that require governments to contain debt within certain limits. While the German government has advocated limiting debt and bringing government spending back in line, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said "he sees no reason to commit himself in that sense" and plans to allow the deficit widen to stoke growth, Bos said. "That kind of nonintervention can have devastating effects" on the euro stability rules at a time when most of the 16 euro-zone nations have budget gaps far exceeding the limit of 3 percent of gross national product, he said.While the German government has advocated limiting debt and bringing government spending back in line, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said "he sees no reason to commit himself in that sense" and plans to allow the deficit widen to stoke growth, Bos said.

"That kind of nonintervention can have devastating effects" on the euro stability rules at a time when most of the 16 euro-zone nations have budget gaps far exceeding the limit of 3 percent of gross national product, he said.

NYT - A New Brew - Sarko Black Label - by John Vinocur

For the complete report from the NYTimes.com click on this link

A New Brew - Sarko Black Label - by John Vinocur

The new Nicolas Sarkozy doesn’t wear his Ray-Bans at public appearances anymore. He has upped his cultural aspirations to read Stefan Zweig and Jose Luis Borges. And he has invited over to dinner people like David Lynch, the film director, and Michel Houellebecq, whose novels are hardly associated with beach-books and sun tan oil. There’s something to it, though the actual process looks more like part of a mid-course re-launch by the Élysée Palace of a president with a five-year term. Or Sarko Black Label, a brand extension that would hope to market the original willful and energetic template as more modest, pondered and refined.

Reuters: Sarkozy says eastern Europe poses risk for EU - by James Mackenzie

For the complete report from Reuters click on this link

Sarkozy says eastern Europe poses risk for EU - by by James Mackenzie

The financial crisis in eastern and central Europe poses a risk to the European Union but necessary measures to confront the situation have been taken, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Sunday. "On the question of eastern and central Europe, there is an economic and political risk for them and for us," he told a news conference after a summit of EU leaders in Brussels. But he said that the combined efforts of international organizations had been mobilized and the measures needed to face up to the crisis had been taken.

EUobserver: Sarkozy goes after US protectionism - by Elitsa Vucheva

For the complete report from the EUobserver click on this link

Sarkozy goes after US protectionism - by Elitsa Vucheva

French president Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday (24 February) called on the EU to protect its industry in the face of US protectionism, and said France and Italy would insist on this during a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Sunday. "There must be competition, but competition to build big European groups, not to make the totalities of our industries delocalize. France and Italy will as soon as Sunday [at an emergency EU summit] speak with one voice to ask Europe to take decisions, strong decisions," Mr Sarkozy told the press following a meeting with Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi in Rome.

The French president's comments come as the US earlier this month adopted a $787 billion (€617 billion) package to boost its economy. The bill contains "Buy American" provisions prohibiting foreign steel companies bidding for US infrastructure contracts financed by the plan. The European Commission has already raised concerns about the clause.

Forbes: Google backs Europe case against Microsoft browser

For the complete report from Forbes.com/AP click on this link

Google backs Europe case against Microsoft browser

Google Inc. wants to help European regulators prove Microsoft Corp. has stifled competition and innovation by bundling its popular Web browser with the Windows operating system. The decision to back the European Commission, announced Tuesday, isn't a surprise because Google wants to lessen the dominance of Microsoft's Internet Explorer with a competing Web browser called Chrome.

Telegraph: French President Nicolas Sarkozy accuses Gordon Brown of ruining British economy (and criticizes US recovery plan) - Rosa Prince

Sarkozy tells it as it is.

For the complete report from the Telegraph click on this link

French President Nicolas Sarkozy accuses Gordon Brown of ruining British economy(and criticizes US recovery plan)

Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, has accused Gordon Brown of ruining the Britain's economy and vowed not to repeat his mistakes in a frank interview which has sparked a cross-channel diplomatic row. Said Sarkozy: "In France, we chose investment because when we put France into debt by taking money to invest, in return we have assets, infrastructure. When you put your country into debt to pay for operating costs, you have nothing in return for your debt and you ruin the country. If the English did that it's because they don't have any industry left. Gordon Brown cannot do what I am doing with car makers [giving them up to 6 billion euros... in construction and other industries, because they haven't got any left. In the US, bipartisan talks are underway to reduce the size of the American stimulus. There are Democrats as well as Republicans who think that the $920billion package contains a good deal of waste in it. When you examine some of the detail it's clear there is hundreds of billions of dollars worth of rubbish included which will not create recovery and only saddle the US with higher debt. A $1.5 billion package spent on broadband for rural areas? I bet that'll be efficiently spent. That's one of the items which will likely come out, and by the end the stimulus is expected to be at least $90billion smaller than originally envisaged."

Note EU-Digest: Mr. Sarkozy understands that in order to get an economy going again you need to get people working, not finance the culprits who caused the problem.

The Hindu News: France - Secret of Sarkozy's stamina

For the complete report from The Hindu News click on this link

France - Secret of Sarkozy's stamina

The secret of French President Nicolas Sarkozy's boundless energy lies in an alternative therapist who massages his back and sends him “positive energy waves”, according to a new book on the man known as the 'hyper-President'. Sarkozy, who will be 54 later this month, has been treated by therapist Jean-Paul Moureau — known by his patients as 'Moureau the guru' — for 15 years with his special technique of 'manual therapy', says the book by journalist Patrice Machuret. Quoting from the book, The Sunday Times said Sarkozy's tirelessness — they call him the Duracell Bunny — has long been a subject of speculation and that in French political circles he is regularly accused of being “on something”, with theories ranging from amphetamines to cocaine.

Moureau is described as a practitioner of etiopathy — a system that pinpoints “the real cause of an illness” and treats it with manual therapy.