FRANCE-POLITICS-PARTY-UMP-COPE-FILLON-COMBO

A combination of pictures made on November 26, 2012 shows a file picture taken on November 21, 2012 of newly-elected president of the right-wing UMP opposition party, Jean-Francois Cope (L) at the UMP headquarters in Paris, and a file picture taken on November 17, 2012 of France's former Prime Minister Francois Fillon (R) during a public meeting in Mouilleron-le-Captif, western France, as part of his campaign to take over the leadership of France's main right-wing opposition UMP party. Called in to mediate the leadership dispute that has thrown the country's main right-wing opposition, the UMP, into turmoil, former French prime minister Alain Juppe threw in the towel late on November 25, 2012, after only 45 minutes of talks between Fillon and his rival, party secretary general Jean-Francois Cope. Former prime minister Francois Fillon, 58, and ambitious UMP secretary general Jean-Francois Cope, 48, have traded accusations of fraud and bad faith since the November 18 party vote ended with Cope ahead by a handful of votes. The crisis has thrown the UMP into turmoil and raised the spectre of an unprecedented split on the right. AFP PHOTO / THOMAS SAMSON / THOMAS BREGARDIS (Photo credit should read THOMAS BREGARDIS,THOMAS SAMSON/AFP via Getty Images)