Former French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing has died at the age of 94, the French presidential palace said on Wednesday night.
Valéry Giscard d’Estaing was president from 1974 to 1981. He died of coronary heart disease, the family told the AFP news agency. Here from the funeral of politician Philippe Seguin in 2010. Photo: Eric Feferberg / pool via AP / NTB
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Just now
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—Valéry Giscard d’Estaing was a strong supporter of the EU and worked closely with the former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt. They became good friends and their strong ties also paved the way for a common currency in the eurozone. Photo: Markus Schreiber / AP / NTB
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Former French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing has died at the age of 94. Here he is with Princess Sonja and Crown Prince Harald, who visited France in February 1981. Photo: Bjørn Sigurdsøn / NTB –
Giscard d’Estaing was president from 1974 to 1981. He died of coronary heart disease, the family told the AFP news agency. – His health deteriorated, and he died as a result of covid-19, the family says in a statement to AFP and adds that the funeral will be a private ceremony at his own request. The former president has been admitted to heart wards several times in recent months, reports the radio station Europe 1. He died surrounded by close family on his farm in central France. His last public appearance was on September 30 last year, when he attended the funeral of another former president, Jacques Chirac, who had been his prime minister. Giscard d’Estaing belonged to the far-right party Union pour la Démocratie Française (UDF). He became the youngest president in the history of France when, at the age of 48, he won in 1974 over the socialist François Mitterrand, whom he lost seven years later. His presidency marked a clear separation from Charles de Gaulle’s conservative government in post-war France and de Gaulle’s successor Georges Pompidou. In France, he is remembered as a president who carried out reforms to legalize abortion, liberalize divorces and lower the voting age to 18 years. French President Emmanuel Macron praises Valéry Giscard d’Estaing and says his seven years in power changed the country. – The direction he set for France is still a guideline. His death leads to deep grief throughout France, Macron said in a statement. He describes his predecessor as a “politician for progress and freedom”. Giscard d’Estaing was a strong supporter of the EU and worked closely with the former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt. Their strong ties paved the way for a single currency in the eurozone. After losing the 1981 presidential election to François Mitterrand, he hoped for a long time to return to the Élysée Palace until he realized he did not have the support he needed. Published: December 3, 2020 6:48 AM –
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