France

July 10, 2024 3:45 PM

India-France-UAE trilateral focal points meeting held virtually: MEA

Officials from India, France, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) convened virtually on Wednesday for a trilateral focal points meeting, as announced by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The discussions focused on collaborative efforts outlined in the Joint Roadmap agreed upon in February 2023. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal took to social media platform X to report on the meeting. "Discussions covered progress in trilateral cooperation as per the Joint Roadmap agreed in Feb 2023, inclu...

July 8, 2024 10:30 AM

Violence erupts in France as left-wing coalition leads snap election

Violence erupted across France following a surprising exit poll suggesting a left-wing coalition's lead in the snap election, dealing a blow to Marine Le Pen's ambitions of forming France's first hard-right government since the war, Fox News reported. Video footage captured masked demonstrators running through streets, igniting flares, and causing disturbances as riot police were dispatched nationwide. French election night turned turbulent as results showed a left-wing coalition poised to clai...

BAYEUX, FRANCE - JUNE 28: Illustrative photo of a set of French electoral ballots for the first round of the 2024 legislative election distributed to electors in the 5th constituency of Calvados, on June 28, 2024, in Bayeux, Normandy, France. France will hold an early legislative election in two rounds on June 30 and July 7 2024, following President Emmanuel Macrons decision which was triggered by his partys heavy defeat to the far-right National Rally in the 2024 European Parliament election. (Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

July 1, 2024 10:18 AM

Far-right National Rally wins first round in France election

Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) party scored historic gains to win the first round of France's parliamentary election on Sunday, exit polls showed, but the final result will depend on days of horsetrading before next week's run-off. The RN was seen winning around 34% of the vote, exit polls from Ipsos, Ifop, OpinionWay and Elabe showed, in a huge setback for President Emmanuel Macron who had called the snap election after his ticket was trounced by the RN in European Parliament ...

June 10, 2024 3:46 PM

Euro and French markets roiled by shock Macron election call

The euro tumbled, while French bonds and stocks were hit hard on Monday, following French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to call a snap parliamentary election after being trounced in a European Union vote by the far right. The euro fell 0.5% to a one-month low of $1.0764 and slumped to a 21-month trough against sterling of 84.53 pence. French blue-chip stocks dropped 2%, led by steep losses in the likes of lenders such as BNP Paribas and Societe Generale, making the CAC 40 the worst-...

IN FLIGHT - APRIL 09: Two French air force Rafale fighter jets fly over the Mediterranean sea during the air operation "Harmattan" April 9, 2011 near Libya. The no-fly zone operation is under the control of NATO in accordance with the United Nations resolution that was passed in March of 2011. (Photo by Patrick Aventurier/Getty Images)

May 28, 2024 5:26 PM

India, France to begin negotiations for Rs 50,000-crore Rafale Marine jet deal

Contract negotiations between the governments of India and France for 26 Rafale Marine fighter jets, valued at Rs 50,000 crore, are scheduled to begin on May 30 with the arrival of a high-level French delegation in New Delhi. The French delegation would meet with its Indian Defence Ministry counterparts for official negotiations, defence industry officials told ANI. The French team will include officials from their defence ministry and industry, including original equipment manufacturers Dassa...

MARSEILLE, FRANCE - MAY 08: Emmanuel Macron, President of France, attends the Olympic Flame arrival ceremony at the Vieux-Port harbor ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on May 08, 2024 in Marseille, France. (Photo by Arnold Jerocki/Getty Images)

May 23, 2024 2:13 PM

Macron says dialogue ‘necessary’ in visit to riot-hit New Caledonia

French President Emmanuel Macron said he believed dialogue was "necessary" during a hastily arranged visit to New Caledonia on Thursday (May 23) after deadly riots triggered by a contested electoral reform hit the Pacific island. "In the coming hours and days, massive new operations will be scheduled where necessary, and republican order in its entirety will be re-established because there is no other choice," Macron said during a meeting with political and business leaders in the capital Noume...

Supporters of New Caledonia Kanaky's independence are participating in large numbers in the May Day demonstration in Paris, in Paris, France, on May 1, 2024. (Photo by Vincent Koebel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

May 16, 2024 12:53 PM

Pacific countries call for calm as New Caledonia riots continue

New Caledonia's Pacific neighbours called for de-escalation and a return to dialogue between France and the island territory's political parties, after a third night of violent riots that have killed four people and led to hundreds of arrests. France declared a state of emergency in New Caledonia that came into force at 5 a.m. local time (1800 GMT Wednesday), giving authorities additional powers to ban gatherings and forbid people from moving around the island. Rioting broke out over a new bil...

May 13, 2024 5:30 PM

Microsoft to invest 4 billion euros in France

Technology and software giant Microsoft will invest 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) in France as part of the annual 'Choose France' business summit, its president Brad Smith announced on Monday (May 13). "We're going to spend 4-billion euros to build a world-leading AI and data centre and cloud infrastructure here in France. We're going to bring to France 25,000 of the world's most advanced GPUs (graphics processing units). We will build the computing capacity here in France, we will put this in...

May 5, 2024 2:33 PM

Xi’s visit to France to open up new prospects for bilateral relations

Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to France is of great significance in building on the past achievements and opening up new prospects for bilateral relations as the two countries celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Xi started his state visit to France on Sunday at the invitation of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron. The visit marks the second state visit by China's head of state to France in five years and coincides with the 60th annivers...

April 27, 2024 3:50 PM

Olympics-Paris 2024 Olympics flame sets sail for France in final relay leg

The Paris 2024 Olympic flame sailed for France on Saturday on board a three-masted ship to mark the final sprint of preparations ahead of the Olympic Games opening ceremony on July 26. The "Belem" left the port of Piraeus in the morning for an 11-day voyage and will arrive in the southern city of Marseille, founded by the Greek settlers of Phocaea around 600 BC, on May 8. Paris Games organisers had received the flame on Friday in a ceremony at Athens' Panathenaic stadium, site of the f...