European Union figurehead Jacques Delors dies aged 98

Former European Commission president Jacques Delors has died at the age of 98. As president from 1985 to 1995, Delors pushed through several major changes including the internal market and the euro. The Frenchman played a key role in the European Economic Community becoming the European Union.

Delors died on Wednesday in Paris, where he was born in 1925. He entered politics in 1979 as member of the European Parliament. He was Finance minister under president Francois Mitterand from 1981 to 1984. In 1985 he rejected the idea of standing for president himself and instead went to Brussels, where he pushed forward European integration.

This was a broad integration, encompassing economy, monetary policy, agriculture, border management, student exchange and other issues. After his political career, Delors remained an important voice in the European debate, setting up his own thinktank.

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