Sarkozy, Europe's man for 2008

Though Slovenia now holds the EU-council presidency, Europeans already are looking toward French President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose country takes the reins in July, says Radek Honzák: "There's not one aspect of European policy that escapes hyperactive Sarkozy. His iron is in every fire, whether in the domestic market, energy policy, immigration policy, finance reform, the agriculture or defence policy. ... The other countries look upon this with a mixture of fear and relief. ... Sarkozy will be the strongest of the leading politicians from the major EU countries. For British leader Gordon Brown, Europe has become a secondary matter; Germany's Angela Merkel will bee weakened by tensions in her governing coalition, ahead of the 2009 elections; and Italian leader Romano Prodi is preoccupied with local problems. Sarkozy will also get a boost from the fact that his EU presidency is sandwiched between that of two inexperienced EU member states: on one side is Slovenia, and on the other, the Czech Republic."

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