Page 37 - France

France bans domestic flights to curb emissions; trains to ramp up frequency

The decision was undertaken in an attempt to cut carbon emissions

Records of French slaves to be inscribed on UN world heritage register

Several hundred documents and items revealing the names and other details of victims of slavery in France's colonial empire is being added to UNESCO's Memory of the World register. This latest addition, which the UN cultural agency approved last week, marks the first time that France has pushed for the inscription of documents on the UNESCO register that were previously archived in France's present-day overseas territories. The Memory of the World program and register was set up in 1992 to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time, according to UNESCO. The documents date from between the 17th and 19th centuries, from places including the modern-day nations of Haiti, Mauritius and Senegal and the French overseas territories of Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Mayotte, Martinique and Reunion. They represent just a fraction of some 4 million people "enslaved in the French colonial empire, whether victims of trafficking or born locall

Anti-migration operation on French African island of Mayotte stirs tensions

Facing a migration quagmire on the French island territory of Mayotte, off Africa's east coast, France's government has sent in 2,000 troops and police to carry out mass expulsions, destroy slums and eradicate violent gangs. But the operation has become bogged down and raised concerns of abuse, aggravating tensions between local residents and immigrants from the neighbouring country of Comoros. It is also laying bare entrenched poverty among both communities, tensions over the island's status and deep inequalities between Mayotte and the rest of France. While Mayotte is a part of France, Comoros 100 kilometers (60 miles) to the northwest across a strait in the Indian Ocean was also once a French colony but has been independent since 1975. Mayotte is by far the poorest corner of France, but its average annual income of around USD 3,500 is still more than double that in Comoros. This has created a powerful pull. How can they imagine for a second that (the operation) will make thi

French court upholds Sarkozy's 3 year sentence in corruption case

The Court of Appeal of Paris has upheld a prison sentence of three years, including two suspended, against former French President Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption and influence peddling

Tata Group Chairman Chandrasekaran gets France's highest civilian award

Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran has been given France's highest civilian award Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur for his contributions to strengthen the trade relationship between India and France. French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna gave the award to Chandrasekaran on behalf of the French President on Tuesday evening. "Our Chairman N Chandrasekaran receives the Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur from French Minister for Europe & Foreign Affairs @MinColonna. He was conferred the highest civilian award of France for his contributions to strengthening the trade relationship between India & France," Tata Group said in a tweet. Similarly, after presenting the award, in a tweet Colonna said Tata group of companies "is a major player in the Franco-Indian partnership: I had the pleasure of presenting its CEO, on behalf of the President of the Republic, with the insignia of Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur. Dear Natarajan Chandrasekaran, you are a friend

First lady's relative attacked as Macron commits to retirement age increase

French first lady Brigitte Macron issued a rare statement Tuesday condemning a physical attack on her great-nephew that took place on the sidelines of a demonstration against her husband's contested pension reform. Police said eight people were arrested in the northern French city Amiens in connection with the Monday night assault on Jean-Baptiste Trogneux, 30, who runs a family chocolate shop. Brigitte Macron called out the assault's cowardice, stupidity and violence. I am in full solidarity with my family and have been in touch constantly since 11 p.m. yesterday, she said. I have on several occasions denounced this kind of violence that can only lead to the worst. Trogneux was reportedly heading to his apartment above the chocolate shop when he was attacked. His father, Jean-Alexandre Trogneux, said the assailants insulted the president, his wife and our family before making an escape. While giving a speech in Iceland, French President Emmanuel Macron called the violence ...

France preferred destination for Indians, sees max visa rejections: Report

At 20.12%, France has the highest visa rejection rate and 27,681 applications were rejected, the report suggests. It was followed by Spain with 18.5% or 14,852 visas rejected

Macron to build back factories, boost France's economy shaken by protests

Building factories to boost job creation and make France more independent that's President Emmanuel Macron's ambition for the French economy. It's a big challenge, as France reels from protracted protests, rising food and energy prices and other fallout from the Ukraine war. While Macron woos investors to help re-industrialize France and reduce Europe's dependence on China and the U.S., protesters follow him around the country, banging saucepans to protest economic injustice and his leadership. More than 200 international business leaders are expected Monday at the Choose France' event staged at the palace of Versailles to promote foreign investment. It follows a series of incentives announced by Macron last week to support innovative industries and transition towards greener technology. They include tax credits in fields like battery production, electric cars, hydrogen and wind power, as well as accelerating authorization for industrial projects. France is changing, is getting .

France to send more tanks, armoured vehicles to Ukraine amid Russia war

The trip to Paris was part of Zelenskyy's weekend-long whirlwind tour of several major European allies, ahead of an expected major Ukrainian counteroffensive against Russia

Zelenskyy makes surprise visit to Paris for talks with French President

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will make a surprise visit to Paris for talks o Sunday night with French President Emmanuel Macron, extending a multi-stop European tour that has elicited fresh pledges of military support as his country gears up for a counteroffensive against Russian occupation forces. Macron's office announced the Paris leg of Zelenskyy's trip, and France dispatched a plane to pick up Zelenskyy in Germany, where he met Chancellor Olaf Scholz earlier on Sunday. Macron's office said the two leaders will hold talks over dinner and that Macron will reaffirm France and Europe's unwavering support to reestablish Ukraine in its legitimate rights and to defend its fundamental interests. They'll also discuss Ukraine's military and humanitarian needs and the more long term perspectives for a return to peace in Europe," Macron's office said. France has supplied Ukraine with an array of weaponry, include air-defense systems, light tanks, howitzers and other arms and ..

Rafale jets of India, France carry out multinational air exercise

Rafale jets of India and France have been jointly carrying out aerial drills as part of a multinational air exercise at the French airbase of Mont-de-Marsan, officials said on Tuesday. Shivangi Singh, the Indian Air Force's first woman Rafale pilot, is part of the Indian team that is participating in the Exercise Orion, they said. In January, Squadron Leader Avani Chaturvedi scripted history by becoming the first IAF woman fighter pilot to take part in an aerial wargame abroad. Chaturvedi, a Su-30MKI pilot, was part of the IAF's contingent that participated in the 16-day mega air combat exercise with Japan Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) at the Japanese airbase of Hyakuri from January 12 to 26. India deployed four Rafale jets, two C-17 aircraft and two IL-78 mid-air refuellers for the three-week multinational exercise in France that began on April 17. It was the first overseas exercise for the Indian Air Force's Rafale jets. Besides the IAF and the French Air and Space Force (FASF

More than 780,000 take part in French May Day protests over pension reform

On April 14, France's Constitutional Council ruled that the legal retirement age would be gradually raised from 62 to 64 by 2030

May Day Protest: World's workers rally, France sees pension anger

People squeezed by inflation and demanding economic justice took to the streets across Asia and Europe to mark May Day on Monday, in a global outpouring of worker discontent not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic sent the world into lockdowns. French police charged at radical protesters smashing bank windows as unions pushed the president to scrap a higher retirement age. South Koreans pleaded for higher wages. Spanish lawyers demanded the right to take days off. Migrant domestic workers in Lebanon marched in a country plunged in economic crisis. While May Day is marked around the world on May 1 as a celebration of labour rights, this year's rallies tapped into broader frustrations. Climate activists spray painted a Louis Vuitton museum in Paris, and protesters in Germany demonstrated against violence targeting women and LGBTQ+ people. Celebrations were forced indoors in Pakistan and tinged with political tensions in Turkey, as both countries face high-stakes elections. Russi

ChatGPT back in Italy after meeting watchdog demands, says OpenAI

ChatGPT's maker said on Friday that the artificial intelligence chatbot is available again in Italy after the company met the demands of regulators who temporarily blocked it over privacy concerns. OpenAI said it fulfilled a raft of conditions that the Italian data protection authority wanted satisfied by an April 30 deadline to have the ban on the AI software lifted. ChatGPT is available again to our users in Italy, San Francisco-based OpenAI said by email. We are excited to welcome them back, and we remain dedicated to protecting their privacy. Generative AI systems like ChatGPT, which use vast pools of online data like digital books, blog posts and other media to generate text, images and other content mimicking human work, have created buzz in the tech world and beyond. But their rapid development has stirred fears among officials and even tech leaders about possible ethical and societal risks, with European Union negotiators scrambling to update draft artificial intelligence

Luxury brand LVMH's market value surpasses $500 bn, a first in Europe

Shares of Paris-based LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, as the company is formally known, climbed 0.3% to €903.70 at 10:43 a.m. Monday, valuing the company at €454 billion ($500 billion)

France evacuates 27 people including some Indian nationals from Sudan

France has evacuated some Indians along with citizens of 27 other countries as part of its evacuation mission from violence-hit Sudan. The French embassy in New Delhi said on Monday that 388 people from 28 countries, including India, were evacuated. "French evacuation operations are underway. Last night, two military flight rotations evacuated 388 people of 28 countries, including Indian nationals," it tweeted. The number of Indians evacuated by France is not immediately known. On Sunday, Saudi Arabia said it has evacuated from Sudan 66 citizens from "brotherly and friendly" foreign countries that included a few Indian nationals. People familiar with the matter said in New Delhi that Saudi Arabia evacuated three Indians, who were part of the crew of a Saudi flight and stuck in Sudanese capital Khartoum. Sudan has been witnessing deadly fighting between the country's army and a paramilitary group for the last 11 days that has reportedly left around 400 people dead. India has alre

Sudan war intensifies, countries start evacuation drive, rescue operations

Countries have started to evacuate their stranded citizens as fierce fighting continues to rage in Khartoum, with France being the latest one to evacuate around 100 people of multiple nationalities

Hundreds of firefighters battle France's 1st major forest fire of 2023

Hundreds of firefighters are steadily wrestling under control France's first major forest fire of the year, which has ripped through swaths of woods and scrub straddling the country's southern border with Spain. Rescue services spokesman Arnaud Wilm told broadcaster FranceInfo on Monday morning that the blaze is being successfully contained and that its biggest flames have been extinguished but fire crews have yet to completely stop its spread and put it out. He said more than 500 firefighters remain on hand. The blaze erupted Sunday and burned on hundreds of hectares (acres) of land between Banyuls-sur-Mer and Cerbre on the Mediterranean coast, and spread across the border into Spain.

Despite heavy protests, French Prez Macron signs pension reform into law

French President Emmanuel Macron, despite severe protests across the country, has signed a pension bill into law to raise the country's retirement age by two years, Al Jazeera reported on Saturday

President Emmanuel Macron's unpopular pension plan enacted into French law

French President Emmanuel Macron's unpopular plan to raise France's retirement age from 62 to 64 was enacted into law Saturday, the day after the country's constitutional body approved the change. Macron's signature and publication in the Official Journal of the French Republic allowed the law to enter into force. On Friday, the Constitutional Council rejected some parts of the government's pension legislation but approved the higher minimum retirement age, which was central to Macron's plan and the focus of opponents' protests. The nine-member council's decision capped months of tumultuous debates in parliament and fervour in the streets. Spontaneous demonstrations took place in Paris and across the country after the ruling. France's main labour unions, which organised 12 nationwide protests since January in hopes of defeating the plan, have vowed to continue fighting until it is withdrawn. They called for another mass protest on May 1, which is International Workers' Day. The .