Daily Diary

Monsieur is spoiling us….

Posted 27/03/2008 by The Daily Diary

With French premier Nicolas Sarkozy this week charming the bejesus out impressionable Brits with his Gallic panache and dazzling other half, the ever-contrarian Diary this week had its beady eye on Paris instead.

Jones Day is currently making waves of Sarkozian proportions in the French capital, with the Yankee powerhouse reportedly in line to take over super-swanky new premises at what is currently the US embassy. Located more or less bang on the Place de la Concorde, you can walk to the nearby British embassy quicker than you can say ‘special relationship’.

One recent lowlight of the building’s colourful history was becoming the target of an alleged terrorist plot in 2001, when al-Qaeda operatives reportedly planned to dispatch suicide bombers to the embassy as well as a so-called ‘American cultural centre’ (if that’s not too much of an oxymoron) in the city.

Fortunately, no attack materialised, leaving the way clear for Jones Day to take up residence in the elegant (and very high-security) compound.

And not a Ferroro Rocher in sight.