WOLFEBORO, N.H. (AP) – French President Nicolas Sarkozy took a brief time-out from his relaxing New England vacation on Sunday to defend himself against criticism over a deal to sell Libya anti-tank missiles.

Sarkozy, vacationing on Lake Winnipesaukee, gave an informal news conference to talk about events back home – including European defense group EADS’ arms sale to Libya, reportedly valued at $405 million.

France’s Socialist opposition has demanded to know whether conservative Sarkozy offered up the weapons contract to convince Libya to free six medics serving life sentences there. The arms deal was announced soon after the medics flew home to Bulgaria on a French presidential plane.

Sarkozy said the arms deal had nothing to do with French and European negotiations to free the six medics – five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor who had been accused of infecting hundreds of Libyan children with the HIV virus.

“The contact wasn’t linked to the nurses’ liberation,” Sarkozy told reporters. He said the arms deal was the product of 18 months of negotiations between Libya and EADS.

The French president argued that Libya should be rewarded for shedding its status as a pariah and cooperating with the international community.

“The Libyans are going to pay several hundred thousand euros to generate work for French factories,” Sarkozy said. “Am I supposed to apologize?”

The leader of France’s Socialists, Francois Hollande, has demanded a parliamentary commission to examine France’s interactions with Libya. Sarkozy said he was open the idea.

“If the commission wants me to testify, I have nothing to hide,” he said.

In an agreement brokered by European officials, the medics flew out of Tripoli on July 24 in the company of French first lady Cecilia Sarkozy. A day later, Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in Libya on a visit to normalize ties, bringing with him a host of defense, nuclear and humanitarian accords. The arms deal was announced about a week later.

Sarkozy met with reporters at a park overlooking Lake Winnipesaukee, with U.S. Secret Service agents corralling the crowd, which included tourists and gawkers. Behind him, motorboats sped on the water.

The French president, looking tan and relaxed in a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, said he jogs each morning and goes fishing every afternoon. He said he was enjoying the region’s forests, lakes and small-town atmosphere.

“I must say, I’m not disappointed,” he said, adding that he planned to return to France sometime around Aug. 15.

The president deflected criticism about how much his vacation might cost, saying he and his family flew to the United States on commercial flights and that friends had rented a vacation home and invited the Sarkozy family to join them.

Sarkozy declined to comment about reports that he might meet President Bush during his stay in the United States, saying only that the White House and the Elysee Palace would comment “when the time comes.”

Sarkozy, who has pledged to warm up French-U.S. relations since his election in May, said his choice of vacation spots had no political significance.

“There are 900,000 French people who go to the United States every year, and I’m one of the 900,000,” he said.

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Associated Press Writer Angela Doland in Paris contributed to this report.

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