Page 15 - Emmanuel Macron

France to provide Mirage fighter jets to fend off Russian attacks: Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that France will provide Ukraine with its Mirage combat aircraft to be able to defend their country against Russian aggression. Macron said in an interview with French public broadcaster that he will announce on Friday a new cooperation" with Ukraine and the sale of Mirage 2005, the French-made combat aircraft which will allow Ukraine to protect its soil, its airspace against Russian attacks. France will also start training Ukrainian pilots, Macron said. He reiterated that Ukraine should be allowed to use weapons provided by its Western allies to target Russian military targets and neutralise the points from which (the country) is being attacked.

World leaders including Biden, Putin congratulate PM Modi on poll victory

US President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz were among over 75 world leaders who congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the ruling NDA's electoral victory and hoped for deeper bilateral ties during his third term. President Putin and Sunak held separate phone conversations with Modi. Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Taiwanese President Lai Ching Te, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Chinese Foreign Ministry also sent congratulatory messages to Modi. "Congratulations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the National Democratic Alliance on their victory, and the nearly 650 million voters in this historic election," Biden said on X. "The friendship between our nations is only growing as we unlock a shared future of unlimited potential," he said. In his message, Putin, congratulating Modi, said Russia attaches great importance to the relationsh

Priority to return to calm amid unrest: Macron in riot-hit New Caledonia

President Emmanuel Macron arrived Thursday in riot-hit New Caledonia, having crossed the globe by plane in a high-profile show of support for the French Pacific archipelago wracked by deadly unrest and where Indigenous people have long sought independence from France. Macron, who briefly spoke to reporters after his arrival at La Tontouta International Airport, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the New Caledonian capital of Noumea, said he viewed a return to calm as the top priority. He said that his wish, along with that of his ministers and the government, was "to be alongside the people and see a return to peace, calm and security as soon as possible. Macron added he plans to meet with local officials and discuss the resources needed to repair the damage wrought by days of shootings, arson and other violence that has left at least six dead and a broad trail of destruction estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of euros (dollars). We will discuss questions of economic ...

New Caledonia protesters, cops play cat and mouse before Macron's arrival

Macron will meet elected officials and local representatives on Thursday for a day of talks focused on politics and on the reconstruction of the island, his aides said

Macron urges TotalEnergies to stay in France amid talks of US listing

A pillar of France's CAC 40 blue chip index, TotalEnergies is one of the world's largest oil companies

New Caledonia unrest: Oz, New Zealand send planes to evacuate nationals

The Australian and New Zealand governments announced on Tuesday they were sending planes to evacuate their nationals from violence-scorched New Caledonia. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed Australia had received clearance from French authorities for two flights to evacuate citizens and other tourists from New Caledonia amid violent unrest that has beset the French Pacific archipelago where indigenous people have long sought independence from France. We continue to work on further flights, Wong wrote on the social media platform X on Tuesday. The Department of Foreign Affairs said 300 Australians were in New Caledonia. New Zealand also announced it was sending a plane on Tuesday to evacuate 50 of its nationals from Noumea, the Pacific island's capital, in the first in a series of proposed flights to bring its citizens home. New Zealanders in New Caledonia have faced a challenging few days and bringing them home has been an urgent priority for the Government, Peters

France unrest: Protestors block New Caledonia roads as police pour in

Road blocks were making it difficult to supply food to stores in several areas and provide secure travel for medical staff, New Caledonia government officials said

Why New Caledonia, a French Pacific territory, is roiled by violence

A turmoil, which has claimed two lives and left three others seriously injured, has thrust New Caledonia into the spotlight

Microsoft pledges $4.3 bn investment at Macron's 'Choose France' summit

Microsoft announced its most substantial commitment yet to France, pledging on Monday to invest 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) this year to bolster the country's burgeoning artificial intelligence sector. The move is part of a broader effort unveiled during President Emmanuel Macron's pro-business event, Choose France, which aims to attract foreign investment and stimulate economic growth. Microsoft's vice chair and president, Brad Smith, visited the company's French headquarters with Macron. We will build out the computing capacity here in France," Smith said. "We will put this infrastructure to work for everyone in France. The plan includes expanding next-generation Cloud and AI infrastructure and delivering up to 25,000 of the most advanced GPUs, or graphics processing units, to France by the end of 2025. Additionally, Microsoft will launch an AI skilling initiative to train one million French people by the end of 2027, emphasizing the importance of equipping citizens with ...

Pfizer, AstraZeneca announce new investments of nearly $1 bn in France

Their investment pledges came as President Emmanuel Macron prepared to kick off on Monday the annual 'Choose France' event aimed at wooing big overseas businesses and investors

Help us avoid a 'new Cold War': China's Xi Jinping to France's Macron

Xi is in Paris on a state visit before heading to Serbia and Hungary in his first trip to the bloc in five years

Macron prioritises trade, Ukraine as Jinping opens European tour in France

French President Emmanuel Macron will seek to press China's Xi Jinping to use his influence to move Russia toward ending the war in Ukraine during a two-day state visit to France. Both leaders were also expected to discuss trade disputes over electric cars, cognac and cosmetics. Macron's office said talks about diplomatic efforts to support Ukraine and put pressure on Russia are a top priority for France. Discussions will also include the Middle East, trade issues and global challenges including climate change. The European Commission president will join part of the meetings to raise broader EU concerns. France is the first stop on a European trip by Xi aimed at rebuilding relations at a time of global tensions. After France on Monday and Tuesday, the Chinese leader will head to Serbia and Hungary. France hopes discussions will help convince China to use its leverage with Moscow to "contribute to a resolution of the conflict" in Ukraine, according to a French presidential official.

Higher consumer spending, investment boost French first quarter growth

Economists broadly expect activity to pick up over the course of the year as lower inflation boost consumers' purchasing power and interest rate cuts fuel an increase in investment

Paris Olympics: Policing to include checks for some of city's residents

Special anti-terrorism measures being put in place to safeguard the unprecedented opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics on the River Seine will also apply to all buildings along the route, meaning people who work and live there and their guests will be subjected to background security checks, Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said on Thursday. Those affected will be cross-checked against security services' databases, to see whether they have previously been flagged as suspected Islamist extremists or for other radicalism, Nunez said. The wildly ambitious July 26 ceremony is proving to be a gargantuan security challenge. Athletes will be paraded through the heart of the French capital on 94 boats along a six-kilometre (nearly four-mile) stretch of the Seine, from east to west. They will be accompanied by 87 other boats for security, media and other people. All of the parade route will be inside a high-security zone that Nunez described as an "anti-terrorism perimeter". He said it wi

Macron's hawkish commentary on us poses 'serious strategic problem': Russia

Meshkov added that the presence of French soldiers in Ukraine "could pose a threat to themselves" and that a small number of "French mercenaries" had already died in the war

Emmanuel Macron says 'no doubt' Russia will try to target Paris Olympics

French President Emmanuel Macron believes Russia could try to sabotage the Paris Olympics, including in terms of manipulation of information, which is a part of "Russia's arsenal of warfare" today

Senegal's Constitutional Council confirms Bassirou Diomaye Faye as Prez

The announcement, made on Friday, sets the stage for Faye's inauguration, slated for April 2nd

French, Brazilian presidents meet, announce $1.1 bn investment for Amazon

The Brazilian and the French presidents on Tuesday announced a plan to invest 1 billion euros (USD 1.1 billion) in the Amazon, including parts of the rainforest in neighbouring French Guiana. The two countries' governments said in a joint-statement the money will be spread over the next four years to protect the rainforest. It will be a collaboration of state-run Brazilian banks and France's investment agency. Private resources will also be welcomed, Brazil and France said. French President Emmanuel Macron's and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Incio Lula da Silva are meeting this week to revive the relationship between the countries after years of frictions with former President Jair Bolsonaro, deepen cooperation to protect the rainforest and boost trade. Macron started his three-day visit to Brazil in the Amazon city of Belem, where he met his long-time ally Lula. The French president then took a boat to the Combu island to meet with Indigenous leaders. Both Macron and Lula saw a .

France raises security readiness to highest level after attack in Russia

France's government increased its security alert posture to the highest level Sunday after the deadly attack at a Russian concert hall and the Islamic State's claim of responsibility. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced the decision in a post on X, saying authorities were taking into account the Islamic State's claim of responsibility for the (Moscow) attack and the threats weighing on our country." The announcement came after Presiden t Emmanuel Macron held an emergency security meeting prompted by Friday's attack in a Moscow suburb that killed more than 130 people. The attack was claimed by an affiliate of the Islamic State group. France has repeatedly been hit by deadly Islamic State attacks, including the Bataclan theater massacre in 2015 in which extremists opened fire on concert-goers and held hostages for hours. French troops have also fought against Islamic extremists in the Middle East and Africa. France was already on high security alert ahead of the Paris Olymp

France rejects bill to ratify EU-Canada trade deal, cites farmers' concerns

France's Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to reject legislation to ratify a 2017 trade deal between the European Union and Canada that has been criticised by farmers as bringing unfair competition from abroad. The EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, provisionally went into effect in September 2017 after all EU governments agreed to it, but its full implementation requires approval by each national parliament. Thursday's 211-44 vote in the Senate does not necessarily mean that France ultimately will reject ratification. The vote sends the bill back to the powerful National Assembly, which previously has approved it and can move to override the Senate rejection and give final approval to the measure. If the Assembly should reject the legislation during its second vote, that would signal France's failure to ratify and could unravel the EU trade deal. Opposition in the Senate centred on concerns about shielding local farmers from what they consider unfair