France's Sarkozy hails Blair as "one of us"

LONDON (Reuters) - French conservative presidential candidate Nicolas Sarkozy praised Prime Minister Tony Blair on Tuesday, saying France had much to learn from the actions of his Labour government.

"European Socialists should be proud of what one of us has done," the rightist interior minister told reporters at Downing Street, before hastily saying that he meant "one of them".

French Socialists were up in arms earlier this month when Sarkozy quoted heroes from leftist ranks in a keynote speech. They are likely to be less upset over his decision to adopt Blair as a potential role model.

French Socialists have not tried to court Blair, whom they regard as a centrist, especially since his decision to join the U.S.-led attack on Iraq in 2003.

Sarkozy, visiting London three months before France's presidential election, distanced himself from Blair over Iraq but said there was still plenty to admire.

"He is a man who counts in Europe," Sarkozy said.

"It is not a question of grabbing hold of a model that isn't ours, but at the same time Tony Blair is a man whose pragmatism has served his country well," he told reporters.

Opinion polls have put Sarkozy just ahead of his Socialist rival Segolene Royal for the April/May vote.