Dominique De Villepin is a French diplomat and politician, who served as French Foreign Minister (2002-04), Interior Minister (2004-05) and Prime Minister (2005-07).
He is one of the foremost advocates of a new global governance based on multi-lateralism. A champion of peace and justice, De Villepin was the voice of France and the International community during the Iraq crisis. Throughout his career, De Villepin has worked to formulate strategies and find solutions to conflicts. From the violence in the suburbs of French cities, which he brought under control by invoking a state of emergency at the end of 2005, to the regional conflicts of Africa and the Middle East. In France, he led the “battle for jobs” that produced a historic reduction in the unemployment rate by nearly 20%.
After Chirac won the presidency in 1995, De Villepin became secretary-general of the Élysée Palace. Following the 2002 elections, Chirac chose De Villepin to run French foreign policy. As Foreign Minister, De Villepin made international headlines with a speech at the UN in which he denounced the U.S. case for war, and won a highly unusual round of applause in the Security Council chamber. In 2004 de Villepin was appointed France’s Interior minister. He took a firm stand against illegal immigration and worked to counter the growth of radical islamic fundamentalism. In 2005 Jean-Pierre Raffarin resigned as Prime Minister, and De Villepin was named his successor.
De Villepin is a highly-respected global commentator. He discusses the challenges of our time: terrorism, proliferation, immigration, the environment, the need for an international response based on a new state of global governance, and the importance of respecting identity and culture in founding a new international order.
De Villepin has written a number of political articles, essays, and books, including 'The Hundred Days; or, The Spirit of Sacrifice' (2001), which centres on Napoleon’s return from exile on Elba. He also published a volume of politically motivated poems, 'The Shark and the Seagull' (2004).
