Brussels, 26/05/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 26 May, at the G8 summit in Deauville in France, European leaders backed the candidacy of Christine Lagarde, of France, in her bid to head the International Monetary Fund. The summit opened on Thursday 26 May in a mood of relief and satisfaction further to the arrest in Serbia of Ratko Mladic (see above). The leaders of the world's richest countries - European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso representing the EU - will be concluding their talks on Friday 27 May, confirming their support for the democratic transition process in Egypt and Tunisia, providing financial support in the form of aid, and calling on Libya and Syria to put an end to the violence perpetrated against civilians. The G8, which met just as confirmation of a ceasefire proposal from the government in Tripoli arrived from Spain, are adamant that Muammar Gaddafi must give up power. The summit also tackled the impact of the economic crisis, the problems facing the euro, and the nuclear issue. EUROPE will give details of the G8 conclusions tomorrow. (Gp/transl.jl)