France

France to deploy Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to support operations in Middle East

France will deploy the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and its battle group from January to April to support French military operations in the Middle East, Emmanuel Macron said. “The…

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Marine Le Pen to Run in 2022 French Presidential Election

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen plans to make a third bid to become president in the 2022 election, Le Figaro newspaper reported on Thursday. The leader of the National…

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French ex-presidential candidate Ségolène Royal probed over expenses

French prosecutors said they have opened an investigation into allegations that former French presidential candidate Segolene Royal used expenses meant for her ambassadorial job to promote her side interests. Royal,…

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Flights affected as mass transport strikes across France continued Wednesday

Mass transportation strikes entered their 42nd day on Wednesday with one union representing air traffic controllers also joining the industrial action. Unions and governments have been meeting on Tuesday to…

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European Ministers trigger process to save Iranian Nuclear Deal

Britain, France and Germany triggered a mediation process aimed at forcing Iran to return to compliance with limits placed on its nuclear program, or potentially face the reimposition of international…

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Photo Story: French lawyers on strike

French lawyers display their law books to write SOS, as they demonstrate against the pension reform by the French government ahead of the trial of French former priest Bernard Preynat,…

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France warns Iran could have nuclear weapon within one to two years

Iran could have nuclear weapons in one to two years if the country carries on violating the 2015 nuclear accord, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Friday. “If…

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French strikes enter fourth day

French unions staged a fourth day of national protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms with polls suggesting that public patience over a record 36-day public sector strike is wearing…

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Photo Story: National strike against Pension reform in France

A protester wearing wearing a red worker jumpsuit and a mask similar to one in the TV series 'Money Heist' (La casa de papel) holds smoke torches during a demonstration…

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Sarkozy to stand trial in October on corruption charges

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is set to stand trial in October over charges of corruption, according to a decision made public by a Paris criminal court on Wednesday. Sarkozy…

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Body of child found in Air France plane landing gear

The body of a stowaway - believed to be a child - has been discovered in the landing gear of an aircraft in Paris. Air France said the body was…

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EU’s top diplomat and European foreign ministers called on Turkey to stop interfering in Libya

The EU’s top diplomat and the foreign ministers of France, Germany, the U.K. and Italy on Tuesday called on Turkey to stop interfering in Libya. POLITICO reports that in a…

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EU, Britain, France, Germany and Italy meeting to discuss Libya

An EU spokesman confirmed the the European Union's top diplomat Josep Borrel and the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy will meet on Tuesday afternoon in Brussels to…

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Joint statement from President Macron, Chancellor Merkel and Prime Minister Johnson on the situation in Iraq and the surrounding region

A statement from the heads of state and government of France, Germany and the United Kingdom on the recent development in Iraq and the region. "We have condemned the…

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German police shoot dead knife-wielding attacker, Second similar attack in France

Police in Germany have shot dead a man who was trying to assail police officers with a knife in the west German city of Gelsenkirchen. The man hit a patrol car with an object and…

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Paris on high alert after fatal stabbing

Police in a Paris suburb shot a man dead after he went on a rampage with a knife, killing one person and injuring two others. French officials gave no motive…

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Fourfold rise in migrants rescued in English Channel

The number of migrants risking their lives by attempting to cross the English Channel by sea has increased four-fold over the last year. French officials intercepted around 2,358 migrants…

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France’s transport strike longest since May 1968

France's transport strike against pension reform has entered its 29th day, making it the longest rail workers' strike since May 1968. Industrial action against President Emmanuel Macron's planned pension reform…

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Photo Story: New Year holiday security preparations in Paris

French Police Officers stand guard as Interior Minister Castaner (unseen) visits the security forces securing the Eiffel Tower to discuss New Year holiday security measures in Paris, France, 30 December…

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French strikes continue to throw holiday travel into chaos

France's transport network remained disrupted in Paris and across the country over the weekend, complicating travel for those returning from Christmas breaks or leaving for holidays for the New Year. The rolling…

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‘The Protestor’ voted Corporate Dispatch Person of the Year

From Bolivia to Lebanon to Ethiopia to Malta itself, people are taking to the streets to protest. Protests where angry citizens have swelled the streets of cities across the globe…

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French pension reform protest movement enters fourth week

As France's national strike over pension reform enters its fourth week, trains are still cancelled and running on reduced schedules across much of the country. The government had called for…

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Months after devastating fire, Notre Dame is still not out of danger

The rector of Notre Dame Cathedral says the Paris landmark is still so fragile that there's a "50 percent chance" the structure might not be saved, because scaffolding installed before…

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Flights cancelled as Storm Fabien batters southern France and Corsica

Heavy rain and winds from Storm Fabien brought the island of Corsica to a standstill on Sunday with flight cancellations days before the Christmas holiday. The airport in Ajaccio remained…

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French fashion designer Emanuel Ungaro dies in Paris at age 86

French designer Emanuel Ungaro, who described himself as a “sensual obsessive”, has died in Paris at the age of 86. Ungaro, who retired from fashion in 2004, died on Saturday…

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No Christmas mass at Notre-Dame Cathedral for first time in 200 years

Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris will not hold a Christmas Mass for the first time in more than 200 years, as repair work continues following April's fire. BBC reports that the…

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France deploys armed drones in the Sahel region

American-built Reaper drones fitted with laser-guided missiles have been deployed as part of France's Barkhane mission in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, French Defense Minister Florence Parly announced. The drones…

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French strikers cut power to homes, companies

France’s warring trade unions on Wednesday defended their decision to cut power to thousands of homes, companies and even the Bank of France to force a weakened government to drop…

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France braces itself for more strikes

French workers take to the streets anew Tuesday on the 13th day of a transport strike that has exasperated commuters, hit business turnover, and threatened the holiday plans of thousands…

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French High Commissioner for Pension Reform Delevoye resigns because of conflict of interest

French High Commissioner for Pension Reform Jean-Paul Delevoye (L) arrives to attend a meeting where French Prime Minister Philippe will unveil the details of a pension reform plan before the…

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Photo Story: General strike in France

Commuters and travellers crowd the platform of Gare du Nord train station during a general strike action, in Paris, France, 16 December 2019. Unions representing railway and transport workers and…

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More than 600 French doctors threaten to quit amid funding row

More than 600 French hospital doctors have threatened to resign if the government does not increase health funding, as striking medics prepare to take to the streets this week across…

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French union calls for Christmas break in transport strike

France’s CFDT union is opposed to transport strikes over the Christmas period but will call for new actions in January if the government does not drop a pension reform proposal…

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World reacts to Johnson’s victory

USA - President Donald Trump tweeted “Congratulations to Boris Johnson on his great WIN!” Trump tweeted. “This deal has the potential to be far bigger and more lucrative than any deal…

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France’s transport strike to continue over holiday period

France entered its eighth day of strikes on Thursday and the industrial action shows no signs of abating - not even for the holiday season. A major labour union said…

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Commemoration of the Strasbourg terrorist Christmas market attack

Scenes from the commemorate of the dead of the 2018 terrorist attack at the Christmas market, in Strasbourg, France, 11 December 2019. A year ago, in Strasbourg's city centre, five…

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France’s Sanofi to buy Synthorx for $2.5 billion

France’s Sanofi said on Monday it had agreed to buy Synthorx in a cash deal worth around $2.5 billion as it seeks to beef up its immuno-oncology pipeline. Under the…

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Public transport chaos in France as strike over pensions continues

French commuters and tourists braced for a fifth day of public transport chaos Monday as the government prepared to respond to widespread anger over pension reform that has sparked open-ended…

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Talks in Paris between Ukraine and Russia aim to end eastern conflict

The leaders of Russia and Ukraine will hold their first face-to-face talks in an attempt to tackle five and a half years of conflict in east Ukraine. More than 13,000…

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NATO, Macron and the Donald

Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump got together at the NATO summit in London this week, after the former called the intergovernmental military alliance ‘brain dead’. It was bound to be…

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Corporate Dispatch visits…..First Toulouse-Lautrec Retrospective in Almost 30 Years Debuts in Paris

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901) is being celebrated with a superb exhibition, the first retrospective of this influential artist in almost three decades. The show, themed Toulouse-Lautrec, Resolutely Modern just opened…

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French strike against pension reform enters day two

A strike that crippled public transport and closed schools across France entered a second day on Friday, with trade unions saying they planned to keep going until President Emmanuel Macron…

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Reporters Without Borders files complaint in France in connection with Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and close relatives of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia filed a complaint yesterday with the French financial prosecutor’s office and the Paris public prosecutor asking them…

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France braces for severe disruption amid biggest strike in decades

France is preparing for severe disruption as millions of workers go on strike in protest at being forced to retire later or face reduced pensions. School and transport workers will…

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Photo Story: ‘Jumanji: Next Level’ World Premiere in Paris

US actor and cast member Jack Black poses for the media as he arrives for the world premiere of the film 'Jumanji: Next Level' at The Grand Rex theatre in…

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US government to impose tax on French products in response to France’s new digital services tax

The US government on Monday said it may slap punitive duties of up to 100% on $2.4 billion in imports from France of Champagne, handbags, cheese and other products, after…

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Three rescue workers die after helicopter crash near Marseille, France

Three rescue workers died after their helicopter crashed near Marseille, southern France, while en route to help people caught up in heavy flooding, the French interior ministry said on Monday.…

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Corporate Dispatch visits………Vincenzo Gemito at the Petit Palais in Paris

Vincenzo Gemito was one of the strongest personalities in Italian art in the late nineteenth century. Both a sculptor and a draftsman of celebrity portraits and scenes of the everyday…

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Berlin and Paris outline plan for EU makeover

Germany and France have drawn up a blueprint for a two-year "Conference on the Future of Europe" aimed at overhauling nearly all aspects of how the EU functions, including possible…

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Thirteen French soldiers die in helicopter accident in Mali

Thirteen French were killed on Monday in a helicopter accident during an operation against jihadist militants in northern Mali, the French president's office said in a statement on Tuesday, France 24 reports. The report…

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Photo Story: The Champs-Elysees in Paris lights up for Christmas

Scenes from the Avenue des Champs-Elysees towards the Place de la Concorde. Thousands of people attended the ceremony to switch on the Christmas illuminations on the famous boulevard in Paris,…

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Deadly weather hits France and Italy

At least three people have died as heavy rain over the weekend led to severe flooding in France and Italy. An elevated 30m stretch of highway collapsed near the Italian…

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Two persons found dead after massive flooding hit southeastern France

Two people were found dead on Sunday after massive flooding that has hit southeastern France since Friday, causing major damage in the region, local authorities said. "One person was found…

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Corporate Dispatch visits……..El Greco at the Grand Palais

The first major exhibition in France of the Greek artist Doménikos Theotokópoulos (1541-1614), better known as El Greco, is on at the Grand Palais in Paris. Seventy-six works will be…

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Traditional Strasbourg Christmas market opens amid tight security

Photos from the Christmas market near the Cathedral of Our Lady in Strasbourg, France, as it opened for this year’s holidays. One year after the terrorist attack in Strasbourg, security…

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Photo Story: Galeries Lafayette Christmas decoration unveiled in Paris

Christmas decorations in the Galeries Lafayette department store as the festive illuminations are unveiled, in Paris, France, on the evening of Wednesday 20 November 2019. This year the guest of…

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BrusselsViewPoint – What happens after Macron calls you brain-dead?

This article appeared on CorporateDispatch's Weekly journal 'Diplomatique.Expert' published electronically on November 16th. It’s a sight Brussels has become all too familiar with: everything is going smooth, until Macron comes…

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