“Europe is not only losing a great statesman but the president is losing a great friend,” European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva quoted Juncker as saying.
Juncker wants to “pay tribute and honour his extensive lifelong work, and his legacy for France and the European Union will stay with us forever,” she added.
“Even though one could have prepared for such a tragic moment the president has no words to express his grief and we’ll be publishing shortly a longer declaration.”
On Twitter, Mr Juncker wrote that Jacques Chirac was “a man of strong convictions” such as “humanist values of fraternity, respect, and tolerance.”
Updated - Former French president Jacques Chirac has passed away
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