Words matter. These are the best Francois Hollande Quotes, and they’re great for sharing with your friends.
It’s not for Germany to decide for the rest of Europe.
To resolve the climate crisis, good will, statements of intent are not enough. We are at breaking point.
I am the president of the youth of France.
In August 2012, the international community should have been far more determined in dealing with the Bashar Assad regime.
Being in the European Union has its advantages, and I think that is what the British are beginning to understand, what those who are tempted by the Brexit are going to reflect upon.
I would like a UK fully engaged in Europe, but I can’t decide in place of the British. I see that for the moment they want to be more in retreat.
Things are going better: there is more growth, less deficit, more competitiveness, better margins for companies, more purchasing power for workers.
A compromise appears out of reach on the stripping of terrorists’ nationality.
France is no longer herself when she is folded in on herself, tormented by ignorance and intolerance. The country would plunge into decline if it refused to be itself, if it was afraid of the future, afraid of the world.
I want to initiate a change in society in the long term.
The British people have decided to leave. It is a sad decision but one which I respect. The vote puts the European Union in difficulties. It must recognise its shortfalls.
The concept of the terrorists is to plunge our country into division.
When we live longer, we must work a little bit longer.
I support the French team – I go to all their matches – but I don’t want to use sport for politics. That’s not good for sport or for politics.
The Republic will not be destroyed by terrorism.
France, after the month of May, will share trust with the current leadership of the United States which, on many subjects, has tended to take useful positions in our view.
Europe existed before Britain joined it.
France wants Britain to remain in the E.U.; indeed, how can we imagine that friendly nation that is our ally and played a role on the international stage could be outside the E.U.?
I ask to be judged on the issue of unemployment.
Be happy, be proud, be generous, be respectful, be proud to be French citizens.
I don’t want to leave my successor and my children to pay for France’s debt.
I gave myself an objective, to be the second president from Correze and finally to be the successor to Francois Mitterrand.
Europe must act quickly where it’s needed and must, once and for all, let member states handle what is their exclusive domain.
I’m going to gather all the French people who want change.
We want the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union.
Very strong declarations were made by those countries who are most responsible for global warming… the United States and China, which undertook commitments towards changing the situation.
Make no mistake: we will win, and groups like ISIL will lose.
We must do everything to ensure that the Euro 2016 is a success.
Nothing was given to me, nothing was entrusted to me, nothing was assigned to me. Everything I have, I took by right.
France isn’t just any country in Europe, and its president is not an ordinary leader in the world. Sometimes directing or leading the way is not enough, he has to initiate policies, as Nicolas Sarkozy was able to demonstrate during his term.
I perfectly understood President Obama’s attitude throughout the French presidential campaign. He had no reason to distance himself from Nicolas Sarkozy. It’s the basic solidarity that leaders who worked together owe to each other.
We are absolutely clear: when these unaccompanied minors have a family link in the United Kingdom, then they must go to the United Kingdom. And they must go quickly and in an efficient fashion.
I commit myself to serve my country.
If there is not a united policy, this mechanism will not work: it will collapse, and it will… undoubtedly be the end of Schengen, the return of national borders.
That is now my mission: to provide a European vision of growth, employment, prosperity – in one word, our future.
Our only goal is to strengthen the opposition and to avoid the dilemma whereby we only have the choice between Bashar Assad and al-Qaeda.
To be influential in tomorrow’s world, to defend our values and our development model, France needs Europe and Europe needs France.
As much as I believe in the Franco-German partnership, I question the idea of a duopoly. European construction is based on a well-balanced and respectful partnership between France and Germany.
We are near, very near, to an end to the eurozone crisis… The worst – in the sense of the fear of the eurozone breaking up – is over. But the best isn’t there yet.
We will continue to hit those who threaten us.
People are tired of constant movement, improvisation, and wild scrambling when plans fail.
I could have made a fortune in cheeseburgers, but I finally chose politics.
Everyone must understand that you can’t demand solidarity when there’s a problem and shirk your duties when there are solutions.
We have chased away the clouds, the sky is all ‘rose.’
My mission is to put France back on its feet. The priority is employment. Efforts have to be made, but those efforts must be made fairly.
I bow down in memory of the victims, and I come to tell my Armenian friends that we will never forget the tragedies that your people has endured.
My security is assured everywhere, and at any moment.
I must demonstrate I’m closer to people – a simpler, calmer presence, yet someone who can also make decisions and obtain promised results.
France, because it was attacked cowardly, shamelessly, violently, France will be merciless against the barbarians of Daesh.
It is intolerable that in our country citizens should feel so upset and under assault because of their religious choice that they would conclude that they have to hide.
There must be pressure on Moscow so that we have negotiations. Moscow will not succeed by unilaterally backing Bashar al-Assad.
We’re all taking part in this solidarity. The French, the Germans, just like all the Europeans in the ESM. Let’s stop thinking that there’s only one country who’s going to pay for the others. That’s false.
The transatlantic relationship is vital for both our countries: France will remain a reliable ally of the United States. Nevertheless, ally does not mean aligned.
The Republic will destroy terrorism.
What the French want is coherence, stability and justice. If I am in a favorable position today, it’s because my fellow citizens want to make the effort to straighten out the country, and at the same time they want it to be just and equitable.
During a term in office there are highs and lows, but what counts is that the goal is set as well as the means to achieve it, and the force we put into getting results.
ISIL struck France because it is ‘free’ and ‘the nation of human rights’. This is not a war of civilisation, as these assassins don’t have any. This is a war against the jihadist menace that threatens not just France.
There cannot be any concessions on the matter of human rights or the criteria for visa liberalisation.
I do not like the rich.
Is France a northern European export powerhouse, or a Mediterranean indebted and dependent economy? Yes to both.
Our enemy in Syria is Daesh: it’s not about containing but destroying this organisation.
Long live the Republic, and long live France.
France has been struck on the day of her national holiday – the 14th of July, Bastille Day – the symbol of liberty, because human rights are denied by fanatics, and France is clearly their target.
Transatlantic links are very important.
China… has the capacity to ensure its stability and growth.
I don’t like indecent, unearned wealth. But it is legitimate for an entrepreneur who has created something to make a good living.
I am not deaf. I hear the anger. I see the dissatisfaction, and I have to go faster.
Our common responsibility is to put Europe’s interests first.
If the discussion centres on the essential principle of the E.U., the free movement of people and the ability to make decisions together, in that case, we don’t want treaty change.
Islamist terrorism has declared war against us, against France, Europe, the entire world.
Calling into question the Touquet deal on the pretext that Britain has voted for Brexit and will have to start negotiations to leave the union doesn’t make sense.
My dear citizens, fellow citizens, French people, this 6th of May, have just chosen change by bringing me the presidency of the French republic. I feel the honor, which has been given to me and the task, the important task faced beyond – in front of you to serve my country.
I am proud to have been capable of giving people hope again.
I will not give way because too many previous governments have backed down.
I don’t want euro bonds that serve to mutualize the entire debt of the countries in the euro zone. That can only work in the longer-term. I want euro bonds to be used to finance targeted investments in future-oriented growth projects. It isn’t the same thing. Let’s call them ‘project bonds’ instead of euro bonds.
Before you, I engage myself to serve my country with the devotion and the exemplary that this post demands. I understand responsibilities of the job and, as such, I give a republican salute to Nicolas Sarkozy who has led France for 5 years and who deserves all of our respect.
Muslims in France should be able to practice their religion freely and safely.
Though Africa is not responsible for emitting greenhouse gases, it is suffering the consequences of climate change.
We must not lose time, neither for dealing in a suitable way with the question of the United Kingdom’s exit, nor for providing a new impetus for the E.U.
I think that France has not made it clear enough recently to our German friends how important it is to introduce euro bonds as a tool against speculation. And how the necessary budget discipline needs to be accompanied by growth.
Our biggest threat is not too much Europe, but too little.
I prefer that people remember me as a president who made reforms rather than a president who did nothing.
A jolt is necessary. Europe must reaffirm it values of freedom, solidarity, peace. The EU must be understood and controlled by its citizens. I will do everything to secure profound change rather than decline.
Everyone says Francois Mitterrand had huge charisma. But before he was president they used to call him badly dressed, old, archaic and say he knew nothing about the economy… until the day he was elected. It’s called universal suffrage. When you’re elected, you become the person that embodies France.
If Europe does not advance, it will fall or even be wiped out from the world map… My duty is to bring Europe out of its lethargy.
The first time that I went to the United States was in 1974. I was 20 years old. America was in crisis.
There must be protection of the external borders.
I have defended the interests of France at the G8 in Washington; afterwards I was at Chicago to announce the withdrawal of French troops from Afghanistan; I have participated in two European summits, so I have fully respected the engagements I made to the French.
I know where I’m going and I have told the French. I am sure if hope is there, we will be able to put France back on its feet… to live better in five years than we do today.
My real adversary has no name, no face, no party. It will never be elected, yet it governs – the adversary is the world of finance.
