Sarkozy praises Ayuso and Aznar at the presentation of his book in Madrid: "I like people who don't bow their heads"

In the Royal Room of the Ritz Hotel in Madrid, an incessant parade of suits awaited the arrival of Nicolas Sarkozy this Monday.. The former French president presented his second book of memoirs, The Years of Struggles, in which he reviews in depth his mandate in France (2007-2012), in addition to current war conflicts such as the war between Israel and Hamas, current politics or his relationship with the famous singer Carla Bruni.

Minutes before his arrival, a fleet of cars from the Community of Madrid and a cast of security guards awaited the star appearance of the French politician, who had to face dozens of photographers on his journey to publicize his new volume, presented by journalist Ana Blanco.

Under the attention of Isabel Díaz Ayuso, José Luis Martínez Almeida and José María Aznar, whom he describes as a “great friend”, the former French leader praised the figure of the former president of the Government and, above all, the president of the Community of Madrid. “I like fighters and politics is not where you have to fight, but in life,” he began his speech looking at Ayuso intently.. “I like people who don't bow their heads, many of those who believe they are involved in politics have not understood that the secret is verticality: a boss, a program and a team.”

In this sense and always speaking about politics, Sarkozy did not hesitate to point out that “Spain is strong when it is united, a divided Spain will be weak.”. “The great project that is needed is to federate. The policy will be effective if things are seen from a higher perspective,” he added.. Furthermore, between taglines and jokes about the French socialists, Sarkozy has reiterated that “what legitimizes a great dream is being willing to pay a great price.”

The former French president also criticized the labor measures of the coalition government. “We have experienced 35-hour days and we have not yet recovered. Teleworking is television, it is not work,” he said.. “We forget in Europe that if we work less than others, we earn less, if we do not fight for our security no one will do it for us. We look a lot at the past and we have forgotten to work for the future, we have to wake up now,” he continued.

“The Nazis were not Arabs”

The former French leader, grandson of a Jew who converted to Catholicism and ex-husband of a Sephardic Jew, also reviewed the current conflicts and did not hesitate to give his opinion on the war between Israel and Hamas.. “Auschwitz is not in the Middle East, it is in Europe. The Jewish genocide occurred in the 20th century, in Europe and carried out by Europeans. The Nazis were not Arabs,” he acknowledged.. “This situation creates a moral obligation for Europeans. We cannot accept that Israel could disappear. There are no political reasons, they are simply moral reasons.. I will never accept that whoever questions the existence of Israel,” he stressed.. “Just because I defend the existence of Israel does not mean I defend [Benjamin] Netanyahu,” he stressed.

Sarkozy hinted that the UN “no longer exists”, that it is outdated and that “when he created the Security Council with the permanent members there were half as many inhabitants as there are now”. In that sense, he made it clear that “Jerusalem is the capital of three religions” and that a new Security Council must be created in the United Nations to address these conflicts.. “Europe has to be the bearer of a new multilateral architecture project.”

The Frenchman also spoke about the war between Russia and Ukraine. Sarkozy said that to talk about the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, you have to know him. “When you know him you can talk to him,” he stated, while recounting when in 2008 Russia decided to send battle tanks to Georgia.. “Putin was wrong about Georgia and he was wrong about Ukraine, but you cannot fix a problem without talking to your adversary,” he said.. “You cannot find a solution by playing smart on TV,” he added, referring to the Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelensky.. “This war is useless and has to stop and Ukraine should not join NATO,” he said.

“I was born for politics”

The former French politician also told of his experiences in the last three years of politics with fascination, like someone who falls into a place by chance without intending to.. “I didn't choose politics, I was born for it,” he acknowledged before the packed room.. “The first political meeting in which I wanted to participate, they did not let me enter, I stayed on the sidewalk, they did me a very big favor, I was so angry that I promised myself that one day I would be on stage,” he noted.

And yes it arrived. For five years, Sarkozy met with leaders from around the world as president of his country. The boy who came from a humble family, a single mother and who had no godparents, presided over France, with what that entails.. “When I was born I understood that I was born in a very small river, with a very small fishing rod, there were only small fish and I dreamed of big sharks. How am I going to get out of this, how am I going to get rid of the boredom…. There is not an inch of my skin that does not have scars, but the fight allows you everything,” he said in reference to whether his years as a politician were complicated.

“My name is Sarkozy, a rare surname in my country, and I rose to the top. He had no relationships, no money.. was different from the others. The only way to live is to fight. Happiness is never in the adversities we avoid, but in the ones we overcome. Whoever we are, we have to fight,” he said.. “We must be reborn until the end, as if we were eternal,” he added.

Sarkozy also shared moments of his symbiotic relationship with former Chancellor Angela Merkel and gave his opinion on former US President Barack Obama.. “He was so cold and so worried about his image that I was disappointed,” he said.. “I don't believe in image, I believe in the strength of convictions.”

The former president, during several moments of his speech, did not hesitate to make a great plea for culture and confessed that every day he reads 50 pages of a book. Furthermore, he wanted to unite Spain and France through art. “Between Spain and France there is a community, a relationship with art, painting, music, we are countries that need our culture to exist and breathe. I see it when I go to the Prado Museum or walk through Madrid. We have a relationship with al art that is the same”.