EU:Will the president-elect back France to Europe's detriment, asks Mary Fitzgerald, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
As the dust settles on Nicolas Sarkozy's victory in last weekend's French presidential elections, politicians elsewhere are weighing up what his presidency may mean for Europe and the broader international stage.
Many in Europe hope Mr Sarkozy will help break the deadlock over the EU constitution issue while Washington looks to the prospect of better Franco-American relations. The only note of outright dismay comes from Turkey - Mr Sarkozy vehemently opposes its plans to join the EU.
Reaction in Ireland veered from a wait-and-see attitude to fears that the new president may prioritise French self-interest to the detriment of Europe.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern said Ireland would seek partnership with Mr Sarkozy based on common interests within the EU.
"France and Ireland have shared views on many important EU issues, such as the future of the Common Agricultural Policy, the conduct of the WTO negotiations, and the European Union's key role in tackling such global challenges as climate change," Mr Ahern said.
The new president will play a key role in addressing "vital issues" currently facing the EU, he added.
"With his new electoral mandate, president-elect Sarkozy is well-placed to contribute to early agreement with regard to the stalled constitutional treaty which will be discussed at next month's European Council.
"Decisions on the future of the treaty are urgently required in order to give the union renewed momentum, and I hope that next month's meeting will produce the necessary breakthrough."
Fine Gael foreign affairs spokesperson Bernard Allen said he hoped Mr Sarkozy would provide strong leadership in relation to the stalled constitution. France's president-elect has previously proposed the EU settle instead for a "mini-treaty" to streamline decision-making.
"In many ways he is an unknown quantity," Mr Allen said. "It would be wrong to pre-judge the man and his record to date. France has been negative on the issue of the constitution but the fact is it cannot be parked indefinitely. We can only wait and see how his performance in the next months turns out."
Prof Brigid Laffan of the Dublin European Institute at University College Dublin said it remains to be seen what stance Mr Sarkozy will take on the EU.
"He is so much more of an unknown than Chirac," she said. "Will he move France to the right? He will - and what will that mean in terms of the European political dynamic? It very much remains to be seen.
"How much, for example, will he depend on the traditional Franco-German relationship," she asked. "It could prove a test of that relationship."
Labour spokesperson on foreign affairs Michael D Higgins said he was "very pessimistic" about the repercussions of Mr Sarkozy's win in Europe.
"There is no doubt his election will bring France strongly to the right and I would worry that his vision when it comes to Europe is concentrated more on French self-interest rather than the wider good of Europe," he said.
"In terms of the relationship between society and economy, Sarkozy's policies . . . may create deepening tensions between the social aspirations of the Lisbon Accord, for example, and the market-economy drive."