I have defended the interests of France at the G8 in Washington; afterwards I was at Chicago to announce the withdrawal of French troops from Afghanistan; I have participated in two European summits, so I have fully respected the engagements I made to the French.

To me, it's important to preserve proximity to the people. I wouldn't do anything pretentious, and nothing that hurts the people who voted for me. Triumphalism isn't my thing.

What the French want is coherence, stability and justice. If I am in a favorable position today, it's because my fellow citizens want to make the effort to straighten out the country, and at the same time they want it to be just and equitable.

Europe needs an engine, and the Franco-German motor has provided that when the two nations have converged on important topics during critical periods. But that partnership shouldn't be a directorate for other EU members.

A large country with such outstanding economic performance as Germany cannot forget that it owes some of its success to demand from other European countries.

Before you, I engage myself to serve my country with the devotion and the exemplary that this post demands. I understand responsibilities of the job and, as such, I give a republican salute to Nicolas Sarkozy who has led France for 5 years and who deserves all of our respect.

I gave myself an objective, to be the second president from Correze and finally to be the successor to Francois Mitterrand.