French President Emmanuel Macron said today he would continue dialogue with Russia to help prevent an escalation of the war in Ukraine, but pledged Paris’ unwavering support for Kyiv, predicting the war would last. In the past, Macron has faced criticism from Ukraine and Eastern European allies for his ambiguous-like criticism of Kyiv in the […]
Tag: France
France: First start of the school year without a mask after the onset of the pandemic
Some 12 million students in France are starting school today without masks for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic and in the hope of having a teacher or professor as the country faces a shortage of teaching staff. After two months of vacation, elementary (6.5 million), middle school (3.4 million) and […]
France was prepared for the ‘pretext’ of Gazprom to stop the supply
Gazprom is just using an excuse to stop supplying natural gas to French energy company Engie, France’s energy minister said today, adding that her country had foreseen the loss of supply. “As we expected, Russia is using gas as a weapon of war and is using the way Engie’s contracts are being implemented as a […]
French Minister of Energy: We have prepared for the Russian gas cut
The French Energy Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacherdeclared on Wednesday that Russia is using the gas as a weapon of war “just as we had planned.” Featured Statements Russia is further reducing French supplies based on that assumption. France has been ready and prepared for such a scenario. The country is already reducing its exposure to Russian […]
Germany and France reject imposing a complete visa ban on Russian citizens
Germany and France reject a proposal to ban the entry of Russian tourists or visitors to the European Union with a joint position document. “We need to think of clever ways of leveraging the important leverage of passport visas,” said the text distributed by the services of Annalena Burbock and Catherine Colonna to the foreign […]
France is close to an agreement to increase natural gas imports from Algeria
France’s Engie SA is nearing a deal with Algeria to increase natural gas imports, a deal that could come after President Emmanuel Macron’s official visit to the country, Bloomberg reports. “Diplomatic negotiations are continuing,” government spokesman Olivier Veran told BFM television on Sunday, adding that an announcement could come soon. Radio station Europe 1 first […]
France is working on a plan for cheap leasing of electric cars
France is preparing a plan to subsidize electric car leases as part of President Emmanuel Macron’s campaign pledge to make them more affordable, Bloomberg reports. The plan will make electric cars available for 100 euros a month, Budget Minister Gabriel Attal said Sunday on LCI TV, noting that the cost is less than what many […]
France: ‘Window’ for extraordinary tax on ‘excess profits’ in energy companies
French Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne is leaving open the possibility of a new tax on corporate “surplus profits” after lawmakers rejected the move last month. In an interview published in Le Parisien newspaper, Bourne said she would prefer alternatives to an emergency tax, such as companies cutting prices for consumers and giving bonuses to workers […]
France maintains the highest electricity prices for next year as well
France will keep electricity price caps in place next year in an effort to protect households from price spikes, Bloomberg reports. Prices will be “held down” in 2023 and consumers will not be asked to pay the difference between rising costs and current price caps, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said today, according to France […]
Tras is wary of Macron: ‘Is he your friend or your enemy?’
Is Emmanuel Macron “friend or foe”? The big favorite to succeed Boris Johnson as Britain’s prime minister, Liz Truss, avoided giving a clear answer, saying she would judge the French president “by his actions”. Truss, who spoke on Thursday night at a Conservative Party event in Norwich, England, however made it clear that she preferred […]