France's Villepin probed for keeping Napoleon statues received while being minister

Former French Prime Minister Dominique de ​Villepin is under investigation ​over valuable statues of Emperor Napoleon ‌Bonaparte ​that he received while serving as foreign minister two decades ago, the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) said ‌on Wednesday. * "This investigation concerns the conditions under which a statuette and a bust were allegedly given to Dominique de Villepin when he was foreign minister between 2002 ‌and 2004, and subsequently kept by him," the prosecutor's office said in ‌a statement.

* Villepin has positioned himself as a potential candidate for France's 2027 election, gaining visibility on social media, as the field of mainstream contenders to challenge the far-right candidate becomes ⁠more ​crowded. * Villepin acknowledged ⁠in an interview with France 2 television that he received the two statues, which are ⁠worth tens of thousands of euros. He said he was prepared to hand them over ​to the foreign ministry.

* His office said Villepin stood ready to ⁠cooperate with investigators. "The National Financial Prosecutor will have no difficulty shedding light on this case, and ⁠Dominique ​de Villepin remains calmly at its disposal," it said. * Villepin is best known for his tenure as foreign minister, during which he delivered a ⁠widely noted speech at the United Nations in 2003 opposing the war in ⁠Iraq. He ⁠later served as prime minister under President Jacques Chirac until May 2007 and has since worked as a consultant.

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