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☆ Angry crowd heckles France's Macron over pensions legislation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Elizabeth Pineau | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] French President Emmanuel Macron talks to a person opposed to the pension reform, in Selestat, eastern France, April 19, 2023. and one man told him: "We don't want this pension (reform), what don't you get?" Another man told him he was leading a corrupt government and added: "You'll fall soon, just wait and see." There were also some cheers - one man told Macron to "hang in there," a woman thanked him for his work and others asked for selfies. In Paris, a free climber known as the "French Spiderman" scaled a 38-storey skyscraper to demonstrate his opposition to the pension law.

"The message is the same across the G7: that we want to work with China in those areas where China is prepared to work with us," a senior U.S. State Department official told reporters on a call. "We are certainly going to stand up against any coercion, any market manipulation, any efforts to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait," the official added. Beijing views Taiwan as Chinese territory and has not renounced the use of force to take the democratically governed island. China is increasingly trying to replace international rules with "its own rules", German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Monday on the sidelines of the G7 meeting. China's top diplomat Wang Yi "hopes and believes" Germany will support China's "peaceful reunification" with Taiwan, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

☆ France's Macron promises government action plan in next 100 days
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Michel Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In a televised speech two days after signing into law plans to increase the retirement age by two years to 64, Macron said he wanted his prime minister to propose measures on working conditions, law and order, education and health issues. "On July 14, we must be able to take stock," Macron said, referring to Bastille Day, France's national day, often a milestone in French politics. "We have ahead of us 100 days of appeasement, unity, ambition and action for France," he said. Macron gave few details about the roadmap he wanted the government to work on but said it should improve working conditions and also tighten immigration laws. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said Macron was "stuck in a parallel world".

☆ France's Macron signs contested pension bill into law
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, April 15 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron has signed into law a bill to raise the state pension age that sparked mass protests, the government's official journal showed on Saturday. The proclamation of the law came after France's Constitutional Council on Friday approved the main pension-age increase and follows months of demonstrations against the plan, which the government forced through parliament without a final vote. Protesters gather in front of the Paris City Hall after the Constitutional Council (Conseil Constitutionnel) approved most of the French government's pension reform, in Paris, France, April 14, 2023. Francois Ruffin, a lawmaker from the left-wing LFI party, on Twitter accused the government of proclaiming the pension law "like thieves in the night". Opposition parties have tabled another bid for a citizens' referendum on the reform after the Constitutional Council on Friday rejected a first such proposal.

☆ Trump accuses France's Macron of pandering to China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoWASHINGTON, April 12 (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Donald Trump accused Emmanuel Macron of pandering to China leader Xi Jinping during the French president's recent closely watched visit to Beijing. "You got this crazy world is blowing up and the United States has absolutely no say. And Macron, who's a friend of mine, is over with China kissing his ass," Trump said in an interview with Fox News late on Tuesday. As president, Trump upended some tenets of America’s post-World War Two foreign policy by questioning the NATO alliance, alienating European partners and indulging autocrats. Trump himself was accused of pandering to world leaders, autocrats in particular, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's Kim Jong-Un.

☆ France's Macron made 'alarm bells go off' with Taiwan comments
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Ted Kemp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFrance's Macron made 'alarm bells go off' with Taiwan commentsChinese President Xi Jinping is probably "pretty happy" that France's president seems to believe that China-Taiwan tensions are a separate issue from the Russia-Ukraine war. CNBC's Ted Kemp reports.

China and Russia have declared a "no limits" partnership and Xi has sought to position China as a mediator in the Ukraine conflict. [1/3] Members of Ukrainian special forces engage in zeroing their weapons prior to a mission, amid Russia?s attack on Ukraine, in the region of Bakhmut, Ukraine, April 6, 2023. But Ukrainian border guard Levko Stek, speaking in a video clip amid explosions, said Ukrainian forces did not sense any "ammunition hunger" on the Russian side. Ukrainian military expert Oleksander Musienko said Russian forces were "exhausted and cannot maintain the same pace of attacks" that they launched in February. "The Russian forces are preparing to organise defensive positions.

☆ Ukraine pushes for Western warplane 'coalition'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Pavel Polityuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A MiG-29 and F-35 planes are parked on a tarmac during a NATO media event at an airbase in Malbork, Poland, March 21, 2023. During a visit to Warsaw on Wednesday, Zelenskiy said Poland had been instrumental in getting Western allies to send battle tanks to Ukraine and he believed it could play the same role in a "planes coalition". MACRON IN CHINAEuropean Union executive head Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to discuss Ukraine during talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday. The U.S. and NATO have said China is considering sending arms to Russia, which Beijing has denied. 'SHOULDER TO SHOULDER'Polish President Andrzej Duda said Warsaw was working to secure additional security guarantees for Ukraine at a NATO summit to be held in Lithuania in July.

☆ France's Macron announces water saving plan, says protests will not stop reforms
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to members of the media as he visits Savines-Le-Lac, South Eastern France, March 30, 2023. With the water plan, Macron and his government are looking to move to other topics. "There are protests, but it does not mean everything must stop," Macron said. Before his speech, Macron told reporters that protests would not stop him from adopting new policies. In some towns, half the water is lost to water leaks, with a nationwide average of 20%.

☆ 'Do you think I enjoy doing this reform?': France's Macron breaks silence after overriding parliament
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

French President Emmanuel Macron is seen on screen as he speaks during a TV interview from the Elysee Palace, in Paris, on March 22, 2023. French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday staunchly defended his reforms to the pension system, but said the government could have communicated its policy better. "Do you think I enjoy doing this reform? Macron said the bill needed to be implemented by the end of the year. Strikes have been carried out by teachers, transport workers and refinery workers, who have blocked fuel deliveries in some areas.

☆ France's Macron faces no-confidence vote as protestors arrested, refinery strikes continue
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives to attend the National Roundtable on Diplomacy at the Foreign Ministry in Paris on March 16, 2023. The government of French President Emmanuel Macron faces a no-confidence vote Monday afternoon, as furious opposition lawmakers contest his decision to force changes to the pension system through parliament without a poll. If the no-confidence vote fails, the bill will go through and lift the retirement age of most workers from 62 to 64 by 2030. Much will hinge on how many members of the center-right Les Republicains party break ranks and vote against the government. Macron calculated he did not have the votes to see the legislation through the lower house of the National Assembly.

☆ France's Macron faces another test with parliamentary votes on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( Dominique Vidalon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

However, while Monday's votes may put on display anger at Macron's government, they are unlikely to bring it down. Opposition lawmakers filed two motions of no-confidence in parliament on Friday. Centrist group Liot proposed a multiparty no-confidence motion, which was co-signed by the far-left Nupes alliance. Hours later, France's far-right National Rally party, which has 88 National Assembly members, also filed a no-confidence motion. None of them had sponsored the first no-confidence motion filed on Friday.

☆ UK's Sunak meets France's Macron in scramble to mend relations after Boris Johnson missteps
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak prior to the 36th Franco-British Summit at the Elysee Palace on March 10, 2023 in Paris, France. Sunak and Macron greeted each other at the Élysée Palace in Paris Friday morning. "The destinies of the United Kingdom and France are linked," Macron said via Twitter, as he welcomed Sunak to Paris. It is thought that Macron and Sunak will hold a press briefing shortly after the conclusion of the talks. Sunak and Macron have billed the summit as an opportunity to reset the strained cross-Channel relationship.

☆ France's Macron calls Wagner Group 'life insurance of failing regimes' in Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, Feb 27 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday described the Russian mercenary Wagner Group as the "life insurance of failing regimes in Africa", in comments made before he visits the continent. He said that African nations would eventually stop turning to the Wagner Group as they would see that it only sows misery. Reporting by Michel Rose, Layli Foroudi; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ France's Macron, Ukraine's Zelenskiy discuss wartime plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, Feb 19 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy discussed strategies on Sunday, including what the Ukrainian leader described as joint decisions ahead of this week's anniversary of Russia's invasion of his country. The two leaders spoke by telephone as Western leaders pledged at a conference in Munich to strengthen their support for Ukraine in the face of Russia's latest military attacks. "...We also discussed important decisions that we are planning for this week - for our year of resistance." Macron also reaffirmed to Zelenskiy his support for a 10-point peace proposal laid out by Zelenskiy, during their phone call. Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Ron Popeski, Editing by Angus MacSwan and Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ France's Macron signals electric car subsidy concern on agenda with Harris
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris meets with French President Emmanuel Macron at the bilateral meeting at the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany February 17, 2023. Michael Probst/Pool via REUTERSMUNICH, Feb 17 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron signaled on Friday that he would discuss concerns about U.S. electrical vehicle subsidies with Vice President Kamala Harris as they met during the Munich Security Conference. "We are working hard," on the issue, Macron said before their meeting. But a solution from Washington that would be acceptable to France has not been forthcoming in the months since. Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ France's Macron faces third round of pension reform strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] A member of CFDT labour union prepares placards on the eve of the third day of national strike and protests in France against French government's pension reform plan, in Nice, France, February 6, 2023. "Our pension system is structurally in deficit," Labour Minister Olivier Dussopt told parliament on Monday afternoon as lawmakers began debating the bill. The government says the reform will allow gross savings of over 17 billion euros ($18 billion) per year by 2030. Conservative opponents, whose support Macron needs for a working majority in the National Assembly, want concessions for those who start working young. "The reform will never be accepted if the most wealthy don't contribute," former Socialist president Francois Hollande told BFM TV.

☆ France's Macron says he is awaiting clarifications from Burkina president on troops
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he was awaiting clarifications from Burkina Faso's transitional President Ibrahim Traore about reported demands for the departure of French troops from the country. Reporting by Michel Rose and Leigh Thomas Editing by Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Mont-de-Marsan, FRANCE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron proposed on Friday boosting military spending by over a quarter in coming years, saying the hike would help ensure a transformation of the army to respond to multiple potential threats. The planned 2024-2030 budget would enable a "transformation" programme to adapt the military to the possibility of high-intensity conflicts, made all the more urgent since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Macron said. The budget for the period will stand at 413 billion euros ($446.99 billion), up from 295 billion euros in 2019-2025, Macron said in a New Year address to the army. This would imply on average a 28.5% increase in the annual military budget from 49.2 billion euros to 68.8 billion. He added France would invest massively in drones and military intelligence and said he was asking the military to pivot towards a strategy of high-intensity conflict.

☆ 'Quick and dirty': France's Macron expected to push through pension reforms after years of pushback
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The French government is presenting new plans to update the pension system. French President Emmanuel Macron is going at it again: a new pension reform will be presented Tuesday, and is expected to face some backlash. Macron is serving his second term as France's president but overhauling the pension system is a long-standing promise that dates all the way back to when he was first elected in 2017. The public sector also has "special regimes," or sector-specific deals that allow workers to retire before they're 62. Public sector workers — arguably the ones with the most to lose from potential reforms — protested for several days in some of the country's biggest strikes in decades.

They issued a joint statement after the third ministerial-level of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) vowed to work constructively to resolve it. EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis on Monday called the $430 billion U.S. Inflation Reduction Act discriminatory and urged steps be taken before year's end to modify the law. It offers consumers tax credits of $7,500 for new purchases of Tesla (TSLA.O), Ford (F.N) and other North American-made EVs that the EU fears will significantly hurt European. Other participants included U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager. During a state visit to Washington last week, French President Emmanuel Macron told broadcaster CBS it was a "job killer" for Europe.

☆ France's Macron discussed Twitter content rules in meeting with Musk
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 2 (Reuters) - Emmanuel Macron met with Elon Musk on Friday afternoon and discussed efforts that have to be made by Twitter to comply with European regulations, the French president said in a tweet. "Transparent user policies, significant reinforcement of content moderation and protection of freedom of speech: efforts have to be made by Twitter to comply with European regulations," Macron said in a tweet on Saturday. loadingReporting Akriti Sharma; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON, Dec 1 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden rolled out the red carpet on Thursday for celebrities, lawmakers, and titans of industry at the White House's first state dinner in honor of French President Emmanuel Macron. The guest list included actress Jennifer Garner and her daughter with Ben Affleck, Violet; singer John Legend and model Chrissy Teigen; "Vogue" editor Anna Wintour; and director Baz Luhrmann. On Thursday night, Biden and his wife, Jill, welcomed the Macrons back to the White House for the dinner after diplomatic meetings earlier in the day. [1/7] Jennifer Garner and her daughter Violet Affleck arrive for a state dinner in honor of French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 1, 2022. The lavish Washington dinner is one of few events that bring together people including the president's son Hunter and Kevin McCarthy, who leads a Republican congressional delegation that has vowed to investigate his business dealings.

☆ France's Macron criticizes Musk for relaxing Twitter content rules
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 1 (Reuters) - Elon Musk relaxing content moderation policies on Twitter is "a big issue", French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday in an interview on television show Good Morning America. Last week, Musk said the platform will provide a "general amnesty" to some suspended accounts. The comments come after a report that the European Union has threatened Twitter with a ban unless Musk abides by its strict rules on content moderation. Twitter and Musk did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Musk said last month that Twitter was experiencing a "massive drop in revenue" as advertisers pause spending.

☆ France's Macron says Qatar must move towards "tangible changes"
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, Nov 26 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday urged Qatar to continue in the direction of "tangible changes" that he said are signposted by Qatar hosting the 2022 World Cup. "This football World Cup, the first organised in an Arab country, is a sign of tangible changes underway. It must continue, and it can count on our support," Macron said on Twitter during the France-Denmark game. France became the first team to book a spot in the World Cup knockout stage on Saturday when it defeated Denmark 2-1 in a tense encounter. Earlier this month, Macron had said sports should not be politicised, brushing off suggestions that he should boycott the World Cup in Qatar.

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