With only a few days left to the 4-7 June European elections, Germany and France's centre-right leaders, chancellor Angela Merkel and president Nicolas Sarkozy, have made a joint call on Europeans to head to the polls in the name of a "strong Europe."

In a shared opinion piece published on Sunday (31 May) by the Journal du Dimanche newspaper in France and Die Welt am Sonntag in Germany, the two politicians said they wanted "a strong Europe that protects [its citizens]."

Mr Sarkozy and Ms Merkel called on "all Europeans" to vote in this week's elections

"A strong Europe does not necessarily mean more powers for the European Union, even more European legislation or even more financial means," Ms Merkel and Mr Sarkozy wrote.

"We refuse a bureaucratic Europe that mechanically applies the rules ... We want a European Union that listens to the citizens, innovates, revitalises."