The summit was supposed to be a forum
for molding a unifying European foreign policy, but it turned into a drama of
discord -- with the outspoken Sarkozy usurping the podium to preach his
policies and lash out at his critics.
Sarkozy said comments by EU Justice
Commissioner Viviane Reding that linked the expulsions to the mass deportations
of World War II were "disgusting." "I am head of the French
state. I cannot let my nation be insulted," Sarkozy told reporters.
The wartime comparison stung many in
France and other members of a bloc designed to overcome and prevent the kind of
hostilities that divided Europe in the past. France deported some 76,000 Jews
from France to Nazi concentration camps, and interned thousands of Gypsies in
camps in France during the war.
Sarkozy insisted France's expulsions of
Gypsies, or Roma, are a matter of security and said France doesn't have to take
lessons from anyone, as long as it respects human rights. He called more than
100 Roma camps dismantled in France in recent weeks havens of crime and
undignified living conditions.
"We will continue to dismantle the
illegal camps, whoever is there," Sarkozy said. "Europe cannot close
its eyes to illegal camps." Participants at the summit lunch said emotions
flared between Sarkozy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso
over the expulsions. Barroso did not want to comment on his exchange with
Sarkozy, brushing off "useless rhetoric or unnecessary controversies."
"Let's put this behind us, let's work now on substance," he said.
Sarkozy downplayed the exchange.
"If there is someone who keeps his calm, and abstains from excessive
comments, it is surely me," said the French leader -- who has a reputation
for having a volatile temper.
Britain, so often at loggerheads with
France over all issues European, backed Sarkozy.
"Members of the Commission have to
chose their language carefully as well," said Cameron, a fellow member of
the center-right. He added that "you should, of course have the right to
remove people from your country if they are there illegally."
Reding's office has said she expressed
regret over the wartime comparison, but maintained her threat to take France to
court for targeting an ethnic group in the expulsions.
"All heads of state and government
said it was profoundly shocking that one would speak in this way, with
historical references that were deeply hurtful to the entirety of our
compatriots," Sarkozy said.
"It is an insult, an injury, a
humiliation and an outrage," Sarkozy said, the kind of comment rarely
heard about any of the EU's top officials.
The expulsions of more than 1,000 Roma
from France in recent weeks, mainly to Romania, have also highlighted
persistent divisions between richer, older EU members and poorer, newer ones.
Beyond the Roma issue, the government
leaders did find unity on some other issues.
They agreed to temporarily waive World
Trade Organization tariffs on key Pakistani imports to help boost the
flood-devastated country's economy.
The EU already has committed millions of
euros in humanitarian aid to help Pakistan recover from the devastation. It
also wanted to craft a long-term strategy to help the country get its economy
back on track amid fears Islamic extremists could exploit the crisis to
strengthen their hold on northwestern regions close to the border with
Afghanistan.
The EU also agreed Thursday to a free
trade pact with South Korea that will slash billions of dollars in industrial
and agricultural duties, despite some countries' worries that the auto industry
could be hurt by a flood of cheaper cars.
The deal -- the first such pact between
the EU and an Asian trading partner -- will be signed at an EU-South Korea
summit on Oct. 6 and come into force on July 1, 2011, said Belgian Foreign
Minister Steven Vanackere, whose country holds the union's rotating presidency.
However, it first has to be approved by
the EU and South Korean parliaments and European carmakers are still hoping
lawmakers will ensure safeguards for their industry.
