Key quotes: Chirac on EU constitution

The president has staked his prestige on a yes vote

French President Jacques Chirac has defended the EU constitution in a televised debate, ahead of a referendum on the issue on 29 May. Here are the key quotes.

We are not asking a question about who governs us for the next five years...

If by chance France did not vote in favour [of the constitution], France would at least for a certain time cease to exist politically at the heart of this Europe...

The world of today is characterised by two major developments - on the one hand, what people call globalisation, which concerns many French people.

It is a form of globalisation driven by an ultra-liberal [free-market] trend, which at the end of the day is carried out to the benefit of the strongest, which naturally raises problems, particularly problems in terms of balance in the future.

Solutions

Secondly, the world is becoming increasingly a world of major powers, current powers, such as the US and also the emerging powers, which are considerable - China, India, and in the future, Brazil and South America, Russia - big powers which naturally intend or wish to impose their will.

Europe must be strong and well-organised President Jacques Chirac

We cannot stand against these powers on an individual basis. France cannot do this - and if we want to think this out and react to it, we need organisation.

Europe must be strong and well-organised to stand against this trend.

So, there were two possible solutions - either letting things drift, as we have done so far, in other words, a solution leading to the kind of Europe which is driven by the ultra-liberal current, an Anglo-Saxon, Atlanticist kind of Europe. This is not the kind of Europe we want.

The second option is a humanist Europe, but one which in order to impose its humanism, its values, must be organised, must be strong, the kind of Europe which has the necessary power in order to be counted in the world of tomorrow...

And this means that it needs to be organised, that it needs to have shared ambition, and this organisation which gives it its strength needs rules, of course.

No fear?

Without rules, there is no organisation and no power, one does not count. These rules are the constitution...

By weakening France, we won't solve its problems President Jacques Chirac

Let's not be afraid.

We can say, let's reject all this. You must understand that by rejecting this, you will not solve any problem... You will considerably weaken France's voice and therefore our capacity to defend our interests. It's what I call the boomerang effect...

[If France voted 'No'] the reality is that you would have 24 countries that voted Yes and then the black sheep that blocked everything. France would be considerably weakened...

By weakening France, we won't solve its problems. What also pains me is this sense of pessimism...