Claude Guéant

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Claude Guéant

Claude Guéant (born January 17, 1945 in Vimy , Department Pas-de-Calais ) is a high French official. On February 27, 2011, he was nominated to succeed Brice Hortefeux as the 40th French Minister of the Interior of the Fifth Republic and held this office until May 15, 2012.

From 2002 to 2007 he was director in the cabinet of Nicolas Sarkozy during his time as foreign and finance minister. During the 2007 presidential campaign he ran Sarkozy's campaign office. On May 16, 2007, Guéant became general secretary (senior civil servant) in the Élysée Palace . Because of his influence, he was also called Cardinal , President No. 2, or Vice-Premier during this period .

Life

Claude Guéant studied law at the University of Paris . After the license exam, he completed training at the Institut d'Études Politiques (IEP). From 1969 to 1971 he continued his studies at the administration college ENA ( École Nationale d'Administration ) and graduated with a Thomas More doctorate. After graduating from ENA, he began his career as a political official. He became Head of Staff of the Prefect of Finistère and in 1974 Secretary General for the Economy of Guadeloupe .

During the 2007 presidential campaign, Gueant ran Nicolas Sarkozy's campaign office.

From February 27, 2011 to May 10, 2012, Gueant was France's Minister of the Interior. In 2013, Claude Guéant's residential and business premises were searched in connection with the Tapie affair. The aim was to determine which decisions led to the controversial businessman Bernard Tapie receiving high compensation payments from state sources and whether Guéant, in his function as the highest government official, had put pressure on the Ministry of Finance . During the period in question, Guéant accompanied the office of general secretary in the presidential palace.

Gueant played an important role in the Libya affair . His former boss, who later became President Sarkozy, is accused of having received 50 million euros in campaign aid from the long-term Libyan ruler at the time, Muammar al-Gaddafi . Gueant is said to have distributed several million euros in cash to other people during Sarkozy's election campaign. During this time he bought an expensive Parisian apartment which he is said to have paid for in cash. According to French investigators, between 2003 and 2012, Guéant withdrew a total of just 800 euros from his account. Anything he spent in excess of that, he always paid in cash. Guéant is said to have rented a safe in a Paris bank during the 2007 presidential election campaign. While he himself says that he kept manuscripts of Sarkozy's speeches in it, the investigators assume that the safe contained banknotes. Gueant is being investigated for money laundering and forgery (as of 2018).

Claude Guéant is a Knight of the Legion of Honor .

criticism

Against the background of the international military operation in Libya in 2011 , Claude Guéant spoke of a crusade led by his President Nicolas Sarkozy. However, this is precisely the accusation that the Libyan head of state Muammar al-Gaddafi made against this military operation.

literature

• Christian Duplan, Bernard Pellegrin: Claude Guéant, l'homme qui murmure à l'oreille de Sarkozy. Editions du Rocher, Monaco 2008, ISBN 978-2-268-06639-4 .

Web links

• Biography on the website of the French Ministry of the Interior (French)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Munzinger-Archiv GmbH, Ravensburg: Claude Guéant - Munzinger Biographie. Retrieved April 9, 2018 . 
2. ^ FOCUS Online: Raid on France's ex-Interior Minister Claude Guéant . In: FOCUS Online . ( focus.de [accessed on April 9, 2018]).
3. ↑ Annika Joeres : Nicolas Sarkozy: Did Gaddafi help him into the presidency? In: The time . March 20, 2018, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed March 20, 2018]).
4. ^ Former French minister investigated by Sarkozy corruption inquiry . In: Mail Online . ( dailymail.co.uk [accessed April 9, 2018]).
5. ↑ http://www.leparisien.fr/flash-actualite-politique/croisade-le-poids-des-mots-et-de-l-histoire-de-kadhafi-a-gueant-ou-poutine-23-03 -2011-1373361.php