Sarkozy Criticized for Using Obama in Campaign.

French President and candidate for re-election, Nicolas Sarkozy, was criticized by opponents for using a video conference with his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama in his campaign.



Several TV channels broadcast the initial moments of a talk held this week between the two presidents, which was recorded at the Elysee Palace.



The footage showed when Obama says he admired the battle that Sarkozy is undergoing to be reelected and Sarkozy's answer in English: "We are going to win, Mr. Obama, you and I".



According to the campaign team of Francois Hollande, the Socialist Party (SP) candidate, the broadcast of these fragments stands as an electoral maneuver to try to strengthen the image of the president.



According to Bruno Le Roux, a spokesman of the SP, the diplomatic tradition states that the regular contacts between heads of state should be confidential.



In a statement, Le Roux criticized the presence of a group of journalists in the opening minutes of the video and that they were allowed to record the interview.



The subsidiary of the General Confederation of Labor of the state owned channel France Television criticized that entity for broadcasting such material in their TV newscasts and said it was an example of manipulation, a few days before the French presidential elections.