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DSK denies 'problem with women' in rare interview

AFP/The Local
AFP/The Local - [email protected]
DSK denies 'problem with women' in rare interview
Former DSK chief claims he doesn't have "any problem with women," despite a series of allegations of rape, sexual assault and pimping. Photo: CNN/Screengrab

Disgraced former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, by has claimed he doesn't have "any kind of problems with women," in an extended version of his interview with CNN, his first in English since being accused of rape in 2011.

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The French politician was arrested in May 2011 after a New York City hotel maid accused him of sexually assaulting her, charges that were later dropped.

He later reached an undisclosed financial settlement with his accusor – reportedly in excess of $1.5 million –  to end a parallel civil case.

In the wake of the arrest, several other sex scandals emerged, including accusations of rape and pimping, but he was never convicted.

"I dont think I have any kind of problems with women," Strauss-Kahn, in Paris, told CNN in his first English-language interview since he was forced to resign as head of the International Monetary Fund after the New York charges emerged.

The scandal also crushed his aspirations to run for the French presidency in 2012.

SEE ALSO: COURT CALLS FOR DSK PIMPING CHARGES TO BE DROPPED

But, the former official said, "I certainly have a problem with understanding that what is expected from a politician of the highest level is different from what can do Mr. Smith in the street."

"I had in mind that I had my private life," he explained, "and that I could do what I want as long as nobody was hurt or some legal problem appeared."

"Something happened which is a private thing, and I still think that what happened in the room is a private thing, unless the prosecutors find something to tell you that you are going to be charged for something and they have proof of that," he said.

But when prosecutors say, "'okay, finally we don't have enough to charge you,' then it means that it's a private thing, and nobody has to say anything about it," he lamented.

SEE ALSO: ITALIAN JOURNALIST MAKES DSK SEX ASSAULT CLAIMS

Strauss-Kahn said he had been ready to go to trial in the civil case, but was advised by his lawyers not to do so.

"My lawyers told me, 'okay, it's gonna take four years, and it will cost you more in legal fees than you will have to pay, even if you win, so you better pay off,' so i decided to settle and go on with my life," he said.

In extracts from the interview aired Tuesday, the ex-official recalled the "terrible" moment, two years ago, when he was paraded before TV cameras in New York in handcuffs, "as if you were a criminal – at the moment where nobody knows if it is true or not."

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The following is an excerpt of the interview from CNN.

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