European relief at Le Pen drubbing

LONDON, England -- Europeans expressed relief at French President Jacques Chirac's overwhelming victory in Sunday's presidential election.

But there was still concern at extreme-right anti-immigration leader Jean-Marie Le Pen's showing.

British PM Tony Blair said: "I congratulate President Chirac on what looks set to be an impressive and deserved victory.

"It is a victory for democracy and a defeat for extremism and the repellent policies Le Pen represents."

In a congratulatory letter to Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said the victory was a clear rejection of the far-right.

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"Politics of demagoguery, of disdain for our shared values and a turning away from Europe is not a model for the future," Schroeder said.

"The successful development of our continent will rather be based on the principles of inclusion, balancing of interests and active participation in European integration."

European Parliament President Pat Cox said it was "a notable victory for reason and common sense over intolerance and extremism."

"The extremist, isolationist policies of Jean-Marie Le Pen have been rejected and crushed," European Commission President Romano Prodi said in Brussels.

While sharing their relief, Italian politicians warned that Le Pen had tapped voters' fears about security that resonate across the continent, demanding the vigilance of Europe's mainstream politicians.

Many Italians saw links between Le Pen and the conservative government of premier Silvio Berlusconi, which includes the post-fascist National Alliance and the anti-immigrant Northern League Party.

"Naturally, there remain all the reasons for concern and anxiety stemming from the first round, and the necessity of the European left to take stock of the fears that pushed so many citizens to turn to the right," said Piero Fassino, head of the Democrats of the Left, Italy's largest leftist party.

Francesco Moro, head of the Northern League, cautioned that the vote showed that Le Pen would be a factor in the future, noting that concerns about security issues also helped bring Berlusconi's coalition to power a year ago.

European lawmakers across the political spectrum said leaders must not grow complacent about the danger posed by far-right extremists in the wake of Chirac's victory.

"We should not sit back. We have to strengthen our efforts to explain Europe, and that nationalism has always failed in European history, and has brought many wars," conservative German lawmaker Friedbert Pflueger said.

In Spain, United Left leader Gaspar Llamazares congratulated Chirac on the result but warned that the European left had a "lot to learn from this fright."

British Conservative foreign affairs spokesman Michael Ancram said: "The lesson of the last two weeks in France is of what happens when the electorate begin to feel disenchanted with and disengaged from a remote political elite apparently more concerned with the grand politics of Europe than with them.

"People either don't bother to vote or they vote for extreme parties like Mr Le Pen's. This phenomenon is certainly not exclusive to France and we must all learn from it."