Nearly 30 members met on Nov. 16 with President Sarkozy’s diplomatic adviser Jean-David Levitte. In keeping with the now-established tradition, the meeting was off-the-record and for members only, and took place at an annexe of theElyséePalace. We have been meeting with Levitte regularly since 1995, when he was diplomatic adviser to former president Jacques Chirac.
With his usual frankness, Levitte discussed the diplomatic issues in his in-basket. Much of the session was devoted to how European leaders were dealing with the sovereign debt crisis inGreeceand trying to avoid contagion to the rest of the euro-zone. He also answered questions on Syria, the Middle East situation in general, Iran and Turkey.
-David Pearson