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But perhaps the most profound issue surrounding my receipt of this prize is the fact that I am the Commander-in-Chief of the military of a nation in the midst of two wars.  One of these wars is winding down.  The other is a conflict that America did not seek; one in which we are joined by 42 other countries — including Norway — in an effort to defend ourselves and all nations from further attacks.

Still, we are at war, and I’m responsible for the deployment of thousands of young Americans to battle in a distant land.  Some will kill, and some will be killed.  And so I come here with an acute sense of the costs of armed conflict — filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace, and our effort to replace one with the other.

Of course, we know that for most of history, this concept of “just war” was rarely observed.  The capacity of human beings to think up new ways to kill one another proved inexhaustible, as did our capacity to exempt from mercy those who look different or pray to a different God.  Wars between armies gave way to wars between nations — total wars in which the distinction between combatant and civilian became blurred.  In the span of 30 years, such carnage would twice engulf this continent.  And while it’s hard to conceive of a cause more just than the defeat of the Third Reich and the Axis powers, World War II was a conflict in which the total number of civilians who died exceeded the number of soldiers who perished.

We must begin by acknowledging the hard truth:  We will not eradicate violent conflict in our lifetimes.  There will be times when nations — acting individually or in concert — will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified.

I make this statement mindful of what Martin Luther King Jr. said in this same ceremony years ago:  “Violence never brings permanent peace.  It solves no social problem:  it merely creates new and more complicated ones.”  As someone who stands here as a direct consequence of Dr. King’s life work, I am living testimony to the moral force of non-violence.  I know there’s nothing weak — nothing passive — nothing naive — in the creed and lives of Gandhi and King.

But as a head of state sworn to protect and defend my nation, I cannot be guided by their examples alone.  I face the world as it is, and cannot stand idle in the face of threats to the American people.  To make no mistake:  Evil does exist in the world.  A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler’s armies.  Negotiations cannot convince al Qaeda’s leaders to lay down their arms.  To say that force may sometimes be necessary is not a call to cynicism — it is a recognition of history; the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.

So part of our challenge is reconciling these two seemingly irreconcilable truths — that war is sometimes necessary, and war at some level is an expression of human folly.  Concretely, we must direct our effort to the task that President Kennedy called for long ago.  “Let us focus,” he said, “on a more practical, more attainable peace, based not on a sudden revolution in human nature but on a gradual evolution in human institutions.”  A gradual evolution of human institutions.

Adhering to this law of love has always been the core struggle of human nature.  For we are fallible.  We make mistakes, and fall victim to the temptations of pride, and power, and sometimes evil.  Even those of us with the best of intentions will at times fail to right the wrongs before us.

But we do not have to think that human nature is perfect for us to still believe that the human condition can be perfected.  We do not have to live in an idealized world to still reach for those ideals that will make it a better place.  The non-violence practiced by men like Gandhi and King may not have been practical or possible in every circumstance, but the love that they preached — their fundamental faith in human progress — that must always be the North Star that guides us on our journey.

Let us reach for the world that ought to be — that spark of the divine that still stirs within each of our souls.  (Applause.)

XIE Zhenhua, Deputy-Director of the Chinese National Development and Reform Commissionthem also the Chef of the Chinese delegation to Copenhagen Climate Conference was refused 3 times to enter the conference centre in two days.

Pure technical problem, says the organiser.

But Yvo de Boer said he zas not even informed.

As XIE told me at the eve of the opening of the conference that there will be a Chinese International News Centre this time in the conference, which will welcome all the journalists.

So China has finally a place to speak in Copenhagen.

This is very new.

So the spokesman had spoken loudly to complain…

It seems half of this country’s police are in the “Bella Centre” now. One day before the opening of the conference, my cameraman shot a few images of the logos before getting out of the metro station, and we were stopped at the gate to be checked what he had filmed. Very efficient.

He looks quite well, with healthy  sun-bans. The power could nto keep the youth and health. He could enjoy life now at least.

When I asked him when would be his turn to visit China, early next year, he confirmed. Then I of course took his card to wait for a good moment for visiting him… for interview of course:))

I noticed that he had ONLY men in the group which follows him everywhere, and of course  we hear the exciting shouts of his fans wherever he goes.

I’ve heard about stories of the “Jewish community stayed in China“. But I just learned with this series of events that there were more than 300,000 Jewish people in Shanghai in the year of 30’s already.

And I found also Shimon Peres such a poet when he speaks.

“ In the Bird-nestle, ( the Beijing Olympic Stadium), though wearing different colours’ of feathers, all the birds could sing the same song together”.

That’s what he wrote when he participate the Olympic Games in Beijing last year. And I was reciting to him the moment of the picture, and then he gave to me more sentences like that without thinking.

After having passed half of the day in OECD center talking about the crises, the protectionism, the WTO Doha process, then 1 hour and 40 minute in the traffic for only passing through the small Paris, then 3 hours in the studio… I just want to take a break of watching the morning news, well, that’s what I see as the title…

But I haven’t even got a chance to go to his concert!

I didn’t know that the “pop king” could disappear one day…

Just like the Concorde plane that I always waited for an occasion to enjoy it.

Nothing is forever… cherishing what you have at present, and the people you love while they could still feel it.

Luckily the strange heavy rain fall down on Saturday, we really had the weather support for this year’s “fete de la Musique”.

Didn’t get time to check where Jack Lang chooses to go, I decided to go to the Elysée Palace just to see whether could get any image of the President together with his super model-singer wife.

Unusually the press had to be checked much more than the publics: we have to cue at the side gate, pass two security check gates, get a badge etc, then sent to a very small zone closed with red ropes as barriers, while the visitors could enter from the main gate widely opened.

There was the performance of the republic guards, of classical young musicians, operas, but the most interesting part is the last group with overseas Caribbean music. Just imagine in the yard of the presidential palace, a group of Caribbean musicians leading the whole crowds for singing, dancing, with their hands all raised, waving…

Isn’t it wonderful?

Unfortunately it exists only for one afternoon, and the long-waited president couple didn’t show out as expected.

A new discovery:

The “Pool images” could even be made form the top of the main gate. Even the former media consultant of the President didn’t know about that when I showed this picture to him.

Financial crises, AF330 accident, plus cold whether and heavy rain, the opening day was really not very exciting…

But still, once every two year, it is still worthy of visiting, better go by the helicopter shuttle, if you do not want to be blocked for two years only for going there.

Chirac is in Beijing, finally.

I’ve prepared this trip two times last year, both postponed.

This is the first time that I follow his visit after his retirement. Also the first time, for a trip in China.

Two days, much shorter than what had been planned, but, very rich.

Besides the « sinophile » given by the French, « best salesman »by the Chinese,  « Old friend » became another nick name of him. We heard that during the meeting with State Secretary DAI for lunch in a modern hotel, and with the President HU, for diner in « Diaoyu tai », the Foreign Guests’ Palace.

Rarely a former leader could  have reception as exceptionally as he received, see only the 4 meals he had in Beijing :

Received by the state secretary in charge of the foreign relationship;

Meeting and diner with the president of China ;

Lunch in the Institute of Foreign Diplomat

Meeting and diner in the Residence of the French Ambassador with the presence of the French community (the most privileged level only)

A swallow that brought the spring wind, that’s his brand new nick name given by the French Ambassador during his welcome speech.

Heard many rumours about his health, some programs were reduced, but we found him quite excited, and happy.

When I mentioned « my first St Valentine’s Day with him »,

(Summit Franco-African in Cannes, opened on the February 14 in 2007),

he said by showing me his cheek : « ah yes, but I’m still waiting for the kiss of the St Valentine’s Day »…

That’s the story of this picture.

It’s really different of following a « former » leader comparing to when he had the power. We are more relaxing, and, more anecdotes for decrypted the personality.