Sarkozy, Fischer back a second term for Barroso

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer have backed a second term for European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso. After a meeting with President Sarkozy in Paris on Friday, Prime Minister Fischer, who currently heads the Czech EU presidency, said Mr. Barroso had the Czech Republic’s full support. The interim prime minister, who took over after the fall of Mirek Topolánek’s centre-right government in March, is now holding a series of talks with EU leaders to discuss preparations for next week’s EU summit in Brussels, the last to be held under the Czech EU presidency. Following his meeting with President Sarkozy, Prime Minister Fischer dismissed speculation about a rift with France following criticism of the Czech presidency, saying the meeting had been cordial and productive.