FORMER Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin was accused of being the instigator of the Clearstream smear campaign against President Sarkozy in a four-hour blitz from the president’s lawyer.

Thierry Herzog - a close friend of Mr Sarkozy for 30 years – went through his case point by point, despite being hurried along by the court president after two and a half hours.

“Quicker, please,” said judge Dominique Pauthe as he gave Mr Herzog a deadline for his summing up. However, Mr Herzog said he was one lawyer against the four of Mr Villepin and took the rest of the afternoon.

After initially accusing Mr Villepin of “colluding and agreeing” with co-defendants Louis Gergorin and Imad Lahoud to smear Mr Sarkozy, Mr Herzog ended by denouncing Mr Villepin as the instigator.

As the “trial of the decade” moves towards a close, Mr Herzog addressed the judges in the Paris criminal court saying: "Did Dominique de Villepin conspire in 2004 to slander? The answer is yes."

He closed his case with a final quote from a former adviser to ex-president Jacques Chirac: “Dominique de Villepin betrayed Jacques Chirac. This man has no principles.”

Mr Villepin denies trying to smear the president with faked documents relating to corruption over bribes on the sale of French warships to Taiwan.

David Mendiboure - Service photo de Matignon