15/05/2012 17:04
Francois Hollande takes the office
Francois Hollande has been sworn in as the new president of France, as reports the Voice of America.
Mr. Hollande assumed office Tuesday morning during a modest ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
The new president was greeted at the Elysee hours before his swearing-in by outgoing president Nicolas Sarkozy, who Mr. Hollande defeated in a runoff vote last week. Mr. Hollande is the first Socialist to become French president since Francois Mitterrand left office in 1995.
During his nationally televised inaugural speech, the new president said he is ready to open “a new path” for his nation and Europe, with a new emphasis on growth, justice and what he described as “social democracy.”
Mr. Holland is to leave for Germany later Tuesday for his first meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss the European sovereign debt crisis.