NOSTALGIA wafted through the sunlit gardens of the Elysée Palace yesterday as President Chirac used his final Bastille Day appearance to convince his doubting compatriots that he had led France to greatness in his 11 years of power.

In combative mood in his annual television ritual, M Chirac, 73, brushed aside the dramas that have hammered the national mood over the past year and repeatedly emphasised: “France is a great power”.

In a 50-minute interview after reviewing Europe’s grandest military parade, he struck the statesman’s pose which has always served him well. He also ensured favour by paying hommage to Zinédine Zidane, the football hero who was sent off for head-butting in last Sunday’s World Cup final. A man as great as Zidane must have been sorely provoked to attack Marco Materazzi, the Italian defender, said M Chirac. “With the Fifa inquiry we shall see who was responsible and if there was or was not a provocation,” he said.

The President tried to seize the summer mood and the lift from France’s unexpectedly good football performance to dampen his image as a lame duck as he nears the end of his term next May. Once again, he refused to rule out a third term, although no-one believes that he will attempt to run. “I am only thinking about action,” he said, refusing to linger on the upheavals of the past 14 months, including the rejection of the European Constitution, immigrant riots and a student revolt.

As a reminder of things to come, Nicolas Sarkozy, the Interior Minister and centre-right favourite to succeed M Chirac, pointedly strolled into the post-interview garden party with Cécilia, his wife. All eyes were on the possible next Première Dame de France, who returned home last month after a year in the company of an advertising executive.

M Chirac said he believed that M Sarkozy, his would-be successor, had all the qualities for the top job. He said nothing of Ségolène Royal, the Socialist who is neck-and-neck with M Sarkozy in the presidential race, according to opinion polls. The President refused to be valedictory, but the political and media world used the occasion to deliver a bleak assessment of his legacy. Roland Cayrol, director of the CSA polling institute, said: “He gives the image of an absent, distant president who is out of touch with the daily problems of the French.”

M Chirac’s strong point was his action abroad, he added.

The President, whose low ratings have shown a rise since the start of the World Cup, scores high marks for what France sees as his commanding voice on the world stage. A poll this week found that 48 per cent of the French believe that his presidency has been “useful for France”. On the eve of today’s G8 summit in Russia, he played this to the maximum, condemning in solemn tones Israel’s offensive in Lebanon and asserting that the world looked to France for leadership. France had been proved right in leading opposition to the US-led invasion of Iraq, he said.

Commentators gave M Chirac good marks for effort, but judged that few would agree with his view that the French economy is striding ahead and social problems are being resolved. He did receive encouragement from Dominique de Villepin, his Prime Minister and protegé. “Jacques Chirac is the most popular politician in the world,” he said. “If you asked people in the developing countries to vote, he would be elected hands down.”

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