PARIS - The European Union needs to become more transparent, socially conscious and environmentally friendly if it wants to move forward, French Socialist presidential frontrunner Segolene Royal said on Wednesday.
Royal, who heads polls to lead the Socialists into next year's presidential poll, laid out a series of proposals, saying the bloc should devote more money to research, encourage renewable energies and reform the Stability and Growth Pact.
But the regional leader stopped short of saying whether she supported Turkey's entry into the bloc -- a topic that could become a campaign issue ahead of the 2007 poll.
"I want to unblock Europe and get France out of isolation," Royal told a news conference, which came after accusations from party rivals that she lacked clear policy ideas.
Royal said French voters' rejection of the EU constitution last year came amid a climate of indifference towards the bloc.
The EU had to be a counterweight to the United States, she said, setting herself apart from conservative presidential rival Nicolas Sarkozy, who is known for his pro-American stance.
"The world needs Europe, the only peaceful power able to represent an alternative to the American hyperpower," she said, adding Europe should take initiatives such as proposing an international Middle East peace conference.
Surveys show Royal and Sarkozy, France's interior minister, in a head-on-head race in the 2007 poll, but both first have to win their parties' official nomination.
Some 66 percent of Socialist voters want Royal to become the candidate, an Ipsos poll showed on Wednesday, with 22 percent opting for former Finance Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn and 12 percent for ex-Prime Minister Laurent Fabius.
But pollsters say some 200,000 Socialist members voting in November might have different preferences than party voters.
Royal has sparked anger of party rivals with tough plans to cut youth crime, with some saying her positions are too close to those of Sarkozy.
However, Royal, who is treated as a relative newcomer although she held ministry posts under previous Socialist governments, set out differences to Sarkozy over EU issues.
While Sarkozy has spoken out against Turkey's entry into the bloc, Royal did not clearly state her opinion on Wednesday. She said France would hold a referendum on the issue, adding: "My opinion is that of the French people."
Unlike Sarkozy, Royal said she did not support a mini-treaty to reform EU institutions after the failure of the constitution, saying the bloc had to boost its objectives and policies first.
Royal said EU economic policy should be better coordinated.
"It isn't healthy that the (European) central bank has inflation control as its only objective, and not growth."
Story by Kerstin Gehmlich
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
