PARIS, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin says he played no role in a political smear campaign against then-Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.
Villepin, 55, went on trial Monday in Paris on charges of participating in a bungled attempt to smear Sarkozy and a roster of business leaders as he and the future French president struggled for power in 2004, The Times of London reported.