Article: Victim or villain? France's Clearstream trial.(Dominique de Villepin)

The meaning of the trial of Dominique de Villepin, once President Jacques Chirac's prime minister

"I AM here because of the dogged relentlessness of one man: Nicolas Sarkozy." With those words, uttered this week outside a Paris courtroom before he appeared in the dock, Dominique de Villepin, a former prime minister, doubtless hoped to portray himself as the victim rather than the villain. But the effect was to confirm that the Clearstream trial, which opened on September 21st, is not just a criminal hearing that promises to expose the murky dealings at the heart of French power. It is also a passionate duel between two ambitious politicians and past rivals for ...

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