Sarkozy pledges to 'unite the French'

Nicolas Sarkozy was officially inaugurated today as president of France, taking over power from Jacques Chirac in an elaborate ceremony in the Elysee Palace in Paris.

The conservative Mr Sarkozy, who won election on May 6 on pledges of market reforms and a break with the past, was given a special necklace of linked medallions engraved with the names of past French presidents and his own.