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on the catwalk .....

on the catwalk .....

French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for France and Britain to open a new chapter in their long-fractious ties overnight, as he received a red-carpet welcome in London with his glamorous new wife. 

In a rare address to a joint session of the British houses of parliament, the French leader proposed that the traditional 'entente cordiale' between the two countries be transformed into more friendly relations. 

He also used his speech to announce that France would propose sending extra troops to Afghanistan to help fight the resurgent Taliban. 

'In the name of the French people, I am here to propose to the British people that together we write a new page of our shared history, a page of a new Franco-British fraternity,' he said. 

Britain Rolls Out Red Carpet For Sarkozy & Wife

pounds for Euros?

Sarkozy and Brown promise 'entente formidable'

Nicolas Sarkozy and Gordon Brown brought their two-day summit to a close with a flourish today. They pledged the "entente cordiale" Sarkozy had already upgraded to an "entente amicale" in yesterday's speech to parliament, would in future be more like an "entente formidable".

At a joint press conference at Arsenal's Emirates stadium attended by British cabinet ministers and 13 French ministers, the two men answered questions on China, Europe, Burma and financial disclosure.

"We have been working hand in glove," said the French president, insisting that the warm relationship between the UK and France was not a "one night stand".

Sarkozy also took the opportunity to say how proud he was of his wife's conduct on the trip, praising her "great humanity".

Responding to a question about the credit crunch, the prime minister said "we will press for a coordinated approach in the international financial community for disclosing and dealing with the problems that now exist in write-offs and off-balance sheet behaviour."

Although the atmosphere was relaxed, there were disagreements.

Asked about the UK's decision to remain outside the eurozone Sarkozy said: "There are opt-out clauses that you [the British] tend to negotiate. If you are inside Europe you are more likely to shape it. We need Britain to get Europe moving."

after the fluffcakes comes the hard Brown...

As the continental man lands on English soil and sees a woman with red hair, he thinks all English women have red hair. As the pombloke lands in Calais sees a Frenchman with a beret, he thinks all Frenchmen wear berets... PR firms and politicians rely on stereotyping this fluff, usually with various witty twists to emphasize the importance of the fluff.

La French president's wife from italy who speaks an impecable English is a beautiful woman who, as a former model for high fashion, can play the game of beauty to perfection unlike this poor woman — suffering a ravaging facial cancer — whom the government refused her right to euthanasia, but killed herself with sleeping pills anyway. A person seeking liberation.

So, the Germans see this anglo-franco engagement party as the prenuptial frollicks to a necessary eventual "ménage à trois"...

Jilted Germans sceptical about Anglo-French love-in

This article was first published on guardian.co.uk on Friday March 28 2008. It was last updated at 15:05 on March 28 2008.

Nicolas Sarkozy's proclamation that France and Britain could together form a "greater force for good in the world" has not gone unnoticed in Berlin.

It has left critics and commentators asking whether the once cosy Paris-Berlin alliance has been pushed aside in favour of this "new brotherhood".

The German government will be closely watching future cooperation between Paris and London. But commentators have cautioned against taking the love-in too seriously and say at its heart is Sarkozy's ambitious desire to persuade the British to be more European.

"Europe needs Britain and vice versa," said today's Süddeutsche Zeitung. "But the appeal to the British to become more engaged with Europe is likely to meet with reservation in Britain." Gordon Brown, it reminded readers, "is not exactly a passionate European".

The general view from Berlin is that it will take until the end of the French presidency of the EU at the turn of the year to determine whether or not it is valid to talk of a Paris-London axis.

The inimitable Die Welt correspondent Thomas Kielinger put its most succinctly, writing: "The proof of the pudding is in the eating, as the Brits say."

The London meeting emphasised France and Britain's shared commitment tod nuclear power, a field in which Germany, with its green ideals, could find itself being increasingly isolated, the Frankfurter Allgemeine (FAZ) said.

"Berlin is not only risking its credibility with regard to its ambitious climate protection goals," the paper said, "but also its scientific and economic links to this kind of technology."

A further reason for France to pull away from Germany is its desire to develop its military strategy, for which "France is reliant on an alliance with Britain", the Berliner Zeitung said. "The old Franco-German axis is not adequate for this any more."

But it will take more than soft-soaping by Sarkozy if he wants to persuade the Eurosceptic Brown to strengthen the EU's role in future defence missions, the paper continued. "He will need more convincing than [the German chancellor, Angela] Merkel."

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