French President Francois Hollande's relationship with Valerie Trierweiler would not have suffered a blow, had he not assumed France's highest office, the former First Lady said in a statement on Tuesday, according to reports.
"We would still be together had he not become president," Trierweiler told reporters accompanying her on her trip to India. Trierweiler, who is a journalist by profession and was labelled power hungry and extremely ambitious by the media, added that she would have dated Hollande even if he hadn't become the president.
Hollande officially announced his separation from Trierweiler on Saturday, after his two-year-long affair with actress Julie Gayet made headlines. But there seems to be no animosity between the former lovers, and Trierweiler said they are constantly in touch.
"We are not at war and we are continuing to telephone each other," Trierweiler said, according to Mail Online.
Reflecting on her time at Elysee Palace, Trierweiler said that there is a lot of back-stabbing and hypocrisy, which made life as the French First Lady a bit difficult.
"You cannot measure just how much betrayal and hypocrisy there is. You are struck by low blows without asking for anything. That's not my way of doing things," Trierweiler said, according to Daily Telegraph.
Multiple reports have it that Hollande is not yet ready to give Gayet the title of the First Lady, which comes with a lot of perks including personal staff and numerous homes across France. But Trierweiler considers it important for France to have a First Lady as the role served a purpose.
"How will we manage if there is no longer a first lady?" Trierweiler questioned. Referring to the upcoming trip of Chinese president Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng, she also wondered, "Who will look after the Chinese first lady?"
