Page 14 - France

After taking office, France's minority govt survives no-confidence vote

France's minority government survived a no-confidence vote on Tuesday, two weeks after taking office, getting over the first hurdle placed by left-wing lawmakers to bring down new conservative Prime Minister Michel Barnier. The vote was a key test for Barnier, whose Cabinet is forced to rely on the far right's good will to be able to stay in power. The no-confidence motion was brought by a left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front. It received 197 votes, far from the 289 votes needed to pass. The far-right National Rally group, which counts 125 lawmakers, abstained from voting. France's minority government is expected to survive a no-confidence vote on Tuesday in a test for new conservative Prime Minister Michel Barnier, forced to rely on the far right's good will to be able to stay in power. It comes as Barnier's fragile government faces a major challenge to get a budget for next year approved with no majority at parliament. Following June-July parliamentary elections, the Natio

France tightens steps to prevent Osama bin Laden's son from returning

France's interior minister said Tuesday he has taken additional steps against any effort by one of the sons of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden to return to France. Omar bin Laden had been living in France's Normandy region but left the country in October 2023 after French authorities withdrew his residency papers and ordered him out, the Interior Ministry said. At the time, authorities also barred him from returning to France for two years, the ministry added. In a post Tuesday on the social media platform X, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said he imposed an additional ban to ensure that Omar bin Laden will not be able to return to France for any reason whatsoever. French daily Le Parisien reported that Omar bin Laden now lives in Qatar. It said he had previously been living since 2016 in the Orne region of Normandy with his British wife and had been working as an artist. The newspaper said that last week he lost a legal battle to overturn the ban on him returning to ...

MEA names Sanjeev Singla, Ajit Gupte as ambassadors to France, Germany

Singla presently serves as the Ambassador of India to Israel; Gupte is presently the Ambassador of India to Egypt

India and France strengthen aerospace ties, signs MoU for bilateral coop

Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu led India's delegation in meet with French aerospace representatives at New Delhi today

Macron holds pitch meeting with Wall Street as budget worries mount

Macron spoke about the likelihood of increasing taxes to fund the country's budget, and was also candid about France's economic challenges

French Embassy in Iran issues travel warnings over tensions with Israel

They advised their nationals to absolutely refrain from coming to Iran and asked them to leave Iranian territory as soon as possible

French President Macron voices support for permanent UNSC seat for India

The remarks by Macron came during his address at the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)

US, allies call for 'immediate' 21-day ceasefire between Israel, Hezbollah

France's foreign minister has said that his country and the United States are working on a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire proposal to allow for negotiations in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Jean-Nol Barrot told the UN Security Council on Wednesday that the proposal would be released shortly. We are counting on both parties to accept it without delay, he said. Earlier, President Joe Biden said that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah threatens to become an all-out war as his top diplomat and other advisers worked behind the scenes pressing for a temporary cease-fire to calm an escalating conflict that has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon in recent days. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US administration was "intensely engaged with a number of partners to de-escalate tensions in Lebanon and to work to get a ceasefire agreement that would have so many benefits for all concerned". Blinken and other Biden advisers have spent the past three day

Can the new French govt solve New Caledonia crisis after months of unrest?

After four months of deadly unrest in New Caledonia, tensions in the French Pacific territory between the pro-independence Indigenous Kanak people and the white settler communities loyal to Paris are simmering as the vast archipelago east of Australia marks the anniversary of colonization on Tuesday. The communities stand far apart on the territory's future following the Kanaks' revolt in May against President Emmanuel Macron' s voting reform in New Caledonia. The loyalists have called on supporters in the capital, Noumea, to mark the 171st anniversary of the French takeover by honking horns during a radio broadcast of France's national anthem, La Marseillaise. Separately, the National Council of Chiefs of the Kanak people is meeting on the neighbouring Mare Island and is expected to unilaterally declare sovereignty over the Kanak nation on their customary territories. Macron sidelined the controversial voting reform along with the situation in New Caledonia in June after he ...

Hero MotoCorp's e-scooters to debut in the UK and EU markets in 2025

Indian automaker Hero MotoCorp will be entering the UK, France, and Spain markets with its Vida e-scooters

EU chief Von der Leyen to unveil her new team after long and bumpy road

European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen is expected to unveil the members of her new team for the next five-year tenure at the head of the bloc on Tuesday. But it has been a tumultuous ride to get it ready for office the search for the 26 members of her college was chaotic and scandal-ridden even before the parliament is to start hearings on whether to accept each proposed candidate. French heavyweight Thierry Breton resigned and openly criticised von der Leyen for allegedly questionable governance on Monday and accused her of backroom machinations to oust him. Many saw his shock resignation more as a removal by von der Leyen of one of her most open internal critics after exerting pressure on French authorities. Compounding such problems was the defiance of many of the 27 member states as von der Leyen struggled to get anywhere close to gender parity on her Commission team they staunchly refused to give her a choice between a male and a female candidate. After days of secret t

French EU commissioner resigns after attacking Ursula von der Leyen

An influential French member of the European Union's powerful executive branch resigned on Monday, calling into question the leadership of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen just as she tries to assemble a new team for the next five years. Thierry Breton, a French business executive and commissioner for the EU's vast internal market who recently clashed with tech billionaire Elon Musk, suggested that von der Leyen had gone behind his back to get another French official named in his place to the next commission. In a post on social media platform X containing his resignation letter to the EU's top official, Breton said that von der Leyen's move was further testimony to questionable governance - I have to conclude that I can no longer exercise my duties in the college. The commission proposes legislation for the 27 EU member countries and ensures that the rules governing the world's biggest trading bloc are respected. It's made up of a College of commissioners with a .

France's new PM signals rightward tilt, vows harder stance on immigration

Barnier said that his government, which lacks a clear majority in a hung lower house of parliament, will include conservatives

Who is France's new prime minister, Michel Barnier?

On September 5, French President Emmanuel Macron has appointed Michel Barnier, the former European Union Brexit negotiator, as France's new prime minister. Watch the video to know more.

Macron names EU's Brexit negotiator Barnier as France's new prime minister

President Emmanuel Macron named Michel Barnier as France's new prime minister on Thursday, hoping the Brexit negotiator and veteran conservative can work with the country's bitterly divided legislature to end political turmoil that has roiled Macron's presidency. Barnier, 73, is the oldest of the 26 prime ministers that have served modern France's Fifth Republic. He replaces the youngest, Gabriel Attal, who was 34 when he was appointed just eight months ago. Attal was also France's first openly gay prime minister. French media and some of Macron's political opponents, who immediately criticized Barnier's appointment, quickly dug up that, when serving in parliament in 1981, the new prime minister had been among 155 lawmakers who voted against a law that decriminalized homosexuality. Barnier's appointment ends more than 50 days of a caretaker government in France, but offers no guarantee of a return to political calm. Barnier faces the tough task of having to work with the acrimonious

President Emmanuel Macron aapoints Michel Barnier as new French PM

The Far-Right National Rally (RN), parliament's biggest single party, indicated it would not block Barnier for now, but could do so later if a range of demands were not met

PM Modi in Singapore, French Prime Minister Michel Barnier, Sebi employees & more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Singapore after Brunei. During his visit, India and Singapore signed four MoUs focusing on digital technologies, semiconductors, health, and skills development.

Rape trial in France will hear woman's testimony of decade-long abuse

A woman who says she was drugged by her now ex-husband so that she could be raped by other men while she was unconscious is expected to testify Thursday before a panel of French judges on her decade-long ordeal. Her former spouse, Dominique Plicot, now 71, and 50 other men are standing trial on charges of rape and face up to 20 years in prison. The trial started on Monday in the southern city of Avignon and is expected to run until December. Gisle Plicot and her husband of 50 years were living in their family home in a small town in Provence with their three children. But in late 2020, her world collapsed. A security agent caught her husband taking photos of women's crotches in a supermarket, leading investigators to search Dominique Plicot's phone and computer, where they found thousands of photographs and videos of men appearing to rape his then-wife, Gisle, in their home while she appears to be unconscious. The Associated Press doesn't generally identify victims of sexual abuse

At least 13 dead after boat with migrants sinks in waters off north France

The mayor of a French coastal town being used in a rescue operation says 13 migrants are dead after their boat ripped apart Tuesday during an attempted crossing of the English Channel. Dozens of people plunged into the treacherous waters. Unfortunately, the bottom of the boat ripped open, said Olivier Barbarin, mayor of Le Portel near the fishing port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where a first-aid post was set up to treat victims. It's a big drama.

France's Atos cuts financial targets, says restructuring still on track

Atos said it now forecast a full-year 2024 group revenue of 9.7 billion euros ($10.72 billion), down from 9.8 billion euros previously estimated