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☆ Von der Leyen names European Commission's new top team
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attends a press conference, on the day of a European Union leaders summit, in Brussels, Belgium March 22, 2024. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday named Spain's ecological transition minister Teresa Ribera as the bloc's next antitrust commissioner while Estonia's Kaja Kallas will be in charge of foreign policy. All commissioners will report to German conservative von der Leyen, who this summer was handed a second term as EU chief executive by member states after her political camp won the most votes in EU elections. A second Trump presidency could sharply alter Western unity on supporting Ukraine against Russia's invasion and up-end EU trade relations with the world's biggest economy. There was some drama on Monday on the next Commission's line-up, when France picked Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne as its new candidate after the incumbent, Thierry Breton, abruptly quit with tough words for von der Leyen.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, Teresa Ribera, Estonia's Kaja, Andrius, Stephane Sejourne, Slovakia's Maros Sefcovic, Ribera, Denmark's, Margrethe Vestager, der Leyen, Trump, Thierry Breton, von der Leyen Organizations: European Union, EU, French, Big Tech, U.S, Ukraine Locations: Brussels, Belgium, China, France

☆ France’s Macron bets big and stares down the far right
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-10 | by ( Saskya Vandoorne | Joseph Ataman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

When Jordan Bardella, the leader of the far-right National Rally party, called on Macron to dissolve the French national parliament on Sunday night, it seemed like political posturing, riding high on his victory in European polls. Calling the far right’s bluffMacron will try to rally the right and left, urging their supporters to come together and vote against the far right, but there’s no knowing if it’ll pay off. The last time a French president dissolved the country’s lower house, the National Assembly, was in 1997. French far-right leader Marine Le Pen arrives at the National Rally party headquarters on Monday, June 10, 2024 in Paris. This could see voters of different stripes banding together to oppose a candidate from the far right.

Persons: parry, Emmanuel Macron, Jordan Bardella, ”, Macron, Jacques Chirac, Stephane Séjourné, Séjourné, ” Manon Aubry, Jean, Luc Mélenchon, Marine Le Pen, Thomas Padilla, Le Pen, Pen, Bruno Le Maire, Hannah McKay, he’ll, It’ll, ” Macron, Bardella, Yaël Braun Organizations: Paris CNN, National Assembly, French, Radio France, France, National Rally, French Finance, National, RTL, Getty, Macron’s, “ Locations: France, Republic, Macron, Gaza, Paris, Europe, Macron’s, Le Touquet

☆ Can European Recognition Bring Palestinian Statehood Any Closer?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Roger Cohen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The decision by Spain, Norway and Ireland to recognize an independent Palestinian state reflects growing exasperation with the Israel of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even from traditional friends, and suggests that international pressure on him will grow. It does not, however, make it inevitable that other larger European states will follow suit. This year President Emmanuel Macron of France has said such recognition is “not a taboo,” a position reiterated by the French Foreign Ministry on Wednesday. “This decision must be useful, that is to say allow a decisive step forward on the political level,” Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné said in a statement about potential recognition. “France does not consider that the conditions have been met to date for this decision to have a real impact on this process.”

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Emmanuel Macron, David Cameron, Stéphane Séjourné, “ Organizations: French Foreign Ministry Locations: Spain, Norway, Ireland, Israel, France, Palestinian, Europe, United States, “ France

CNN —As Sudan marks the grim anniversary of a year-long conflict, aid agencies have warned that the country teeters on the edge of collapse, facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis that has been largely ignored by the rest of the world. The situation in Sudan is dire, with over 8.4 million people, including 2 million children under the age of 5, forced to flee their homes in the wake of the conflict, according to Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Despite these alarming figures, the international response has been woefully inadequate, with only 5% of the 2024 humanitarian response plan for Sudan funded thus far, Islamic Relief said in a statement. A lack of responseDoctors Without Borders on Friday called on leaders attending the Paris conference “to immediately scale up the humanitarian response” in Sudan. “The warring parties in Sudan have inflicted tremendous suffering on Sudanese from all walks of life,” he said.

Persons: Elsadig Elnour, Volker Türk, Sudan “, “, Türk, Stéphane Séjourné, Annalena Baerbock, ”, Mohamed Badawi, ” Mohamed Osman, ” Osman, Sudan Tom Perriello, Perriello, Ramadan Organizations: CNN, Islamic, Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF, Rapid Support Forces, UN, Human, French, Sudan’s, African Center for Justice, Peace Studies, Paris, Human Rights Watch, “, US, State Department Locations: Sudan, France, Paris, ”, Jazira, Saudi Arabia

☆ Cease-Fire Demand Grows Amid Questions Around Gaza Aid Convoy Deaths
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Victoria Kim | Raja Abdulrahim | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

World leaders on Friday intensified their demands on Israel to get more aid into Gaza and provide more answers about the deaths of scores of Palestinians in a scene of chaos surrounding a humanitarian convoy its forces were securing. Many questions remained unanswered as the Israeli military and Gazan officials offered divergent accounts of one of the deadliest known disasters involving civilians in the nearly five-month war. “People in Gaza are closer to death than to life,” she said on social media. “More humanitarian aid must come in. Immediately.”France’s foreign minister, Stéphane Séjourné, called for an independent investigation and said the deadly chaos surrounding the convoy was the result of a humanitarian catastrophe that has left Gazans “fighting for food.”

Persons: Annalena, ”, Stéphane Séjourné Locations: Israel, Gaza

☆ Russia relishes NATO disarray after hasty denials of plan to deploy ground troops to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The United States, Germany, the U.K., Spain, Poland and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg were among those denying that sending ground troops into Ukraine was an option. She claimed NATO countries' denials that they planned to send their ground troops into Ukraine showed the West had "betrayed Ukraine and will continue to use and betray it," repeating Moscow's baseless claims that Western countries are using Ukraine to destroy Russia. After the conference, Macron said discussions had also covered the possibility of deploying ground troops, although he said there was no agreement on the issue. France was left looking increasingly isolated throughout the day Tuesday, with the White House also distancing itself from Macron's comments. When asked about Macron's comments, Kirby said "well, that's a sovereign decision that every NATO ally would have to make for themselves.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Mikhail Metzel, Emmanuel Macron, Jens Stoltenberg, Dmitry Medvedev, Macron, Vyacheslav Volodin, Volodin, Napoleon Bonaparte, Napoleon, Maria Zakharova, Macron's, Stephane Sejourne, John Kirby, Kirby, General Stoltenberg, —, Biden, Timothy Ash, Ash Organizations: Defence, Sputnik, Reuters, NATO, Russian, Russia's Foreign Ministry, Ukraine —, Russian Foreign, Tass, Chesnot, Getty, White, . National Security, Kremlin Russia, Kremlin, Russia, BlueBay Asset Management Locations: Nazi Germany, Moscow, Russia, Reuters Russia, Ukraine, United States, Germany, Spain, Poland, NATO, Russian, France, Canada, Paris, France's, Republic, U.S

☆ Putin Opponent Alexei Navalny Dies in Arctic Jail, Russia Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

By Guy Faulconbridge, Felix LightMOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's most prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny collapsed and died on Friday after a walk at the "Polar Wolf" Arctic penal colony where he was serving a long jail term, the Russian prison service said. "Russian authorities publish a confession that they killed Alexei Navalny in prison," Navalny aide Leonid Volkov wrote on social media. "Alexei Navalny paid with his life for his resistance to a system of oppression," France's Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said. "My sincere belief is that it was the conditions of detention that led to Navalny's death," Russian newspaper editor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov told Reuters. Navalny long forecast Russia could face seismic political turmoil, including revolution, because he said Putin built a brittle system of personal rule reliant on sycophancy and corruption.

Persons: Guy Faulconbridge, Felix Light, Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Leonid Volkov, Stephane Sejourne, Vladimir Putin's, Navalny's, Kira Yarmysh, Dmitry Muratov, Putin, Yulia, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Federal Penitentiary Service, Nenets Autonomous, IK, Kremlin, Peace, Reuters, KREMLIN, U.S, CIA Locations: Nenets, Nenets Autonomous District, Kharp, Moscow, Russian, Russia, Germany, Siberia, Europe

☆ France, Ukraine to Sign Security Deal Soon, French Foreign Minister Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By John IrishPARIS (Reuters) - France and Ukraine are soon likely to sign a bilateral agreement on security commitments, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said on Wednesday. French President Emmanuel Macron was expected to finalise a security deal in Ukraine this month, but he postponed the trip for security reasons. "A bilateral accord is in discussion and will be signed probably soon between the President Emmanuel Macron and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy," Sejourne told a hearing in parliament. According two diplomats aware of the talks, France would announce a 200-million-euro fund for civilian projects to be carried out by French companies. "In the coming days we will give numbers and give you transparency on the military and the civilian aid," Sejourne said.

Persons: John Irish PARIS, Stephane Sejourne, Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Sejourne, Macron, John Irish, Mark Heinrich, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: French, NATO, Institute Locations: France, Ukraine, Germany, Paris, Kiel

PARIS (AP) — The French foreign ministry said that it summoned Russia’s ambassador to France on Monday over the deaths of two French nationals working for nongovernmental organizations in Ukraine. The humanitarian workers were killed in Russian strikes on Thursday near the front line of fighting in the war in Ukraine north of the Dnipro River. Three other French nationals were wounded in the strikes. A day after the strikes, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne posted on X, formerly Twitter, that “Russian barbarity has targeted civilians in Ukraine ... Russia will have to answer for its crimes.”The French aid workers were killed in the town of Beryslav in the southern Kherson region, Gov. French President Emmanuel Macron, who is expected to visit Kyiv in the next few weeks, denounced the attack as “cowardly and outrageous.”The French foreign ministry said that officials would also use the summoning of Russia's ambassador to “denounce the resurgence of disinformation targeting France.”Photos You Should See View All 45 Images___Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Persons: Russia’s, Stephane Sejourne, Oleksandr Prokudin, Emmanuel Macron, “ Organizations: PARIS, French, Gov, Kyiv Locations: France, Ukraine, Dnipro, Russia, Beryslav, Kherson, russia, ukraine

☆ French Minister Heads to Mideast With Post-War Gaza Plans in Mind
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By John IrishPARIS (Reuters) - France's foreign minister travels to the Middle East on Saturday to test ideas about reviving an Israeli-Palestinian political process after the Gaza war as Europe tries to play a role in a conflict that has deeply divided the European Union. He was referring to Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne's trip to Egypt, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Lebanon, where he will also continue French efforts to defuse tensions between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. European Union member states are divided on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and their response has mostly been to try to ease the humanitarian situation in the enclave. The Gaza war was triggered by fighters from the Hamas militant group who stormed across the border fence into Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and capturing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza say more than 27,000 Palestinians have been confirmed killed, thousands more wounded, the enclave left in ruins and many more displaced.

Persons: John Irish PARIS, Christophe Lemoine, Stephane Sejourne's, Israel, Josep Borrell, John Irish, William Maclean Organizations: European Union, Union, EU Locations: Gaza, Europe, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Palestinian Territories, Lebanon, Iran, EU, Paris

☆ EU Commission sticks to US economist pick for senior antitrust job
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, July 14 (Reuters) - The European Commission stuck to its guns on Friday, saying it was not reconsidering EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager's pick of a U.S. economist to a senior job helping to oversee Big Tech despite criticism from French ministers and EU lawmakers. Fiona Scott Morton, 56, the former chief economist at the U.S. Department of Justice during former President Barack Obama's tenure, will take up her three-year stint on Sept. 1 when the current chief economist, Pierre Regibeau, retires. She will be the first non-EU national, first U.S. national and first woman for the job. They cited the strategic importance of the post, potential conflicts of interest due to Scott Morton's previous work with Big Tech, and her previous public antitrust comments. Head of the centre-right group European People's Party Manfred Weber, president of the liberals' group Renew Europe Stephane Sejourne, head of the socialists group Iratxe Garcia Perez and the heads of the green party Philippe Lamberts and Terry Reintke said they opposed the new hire.

Persons: Margrethe Vestager's, Fiona Scott Morton, Barack Obama's, Pierre Regibeau, Vestager, Scott Morton's, Dana Spinant, European People's Party Manfred Weber, Europe Stephane Sejourne, Iratxe Garcia Perez, Philippe Lamberts, Terry Reintke, Scott Morton, Foo Yun Chee, Jan Harvey Organizations: European Commission, Big Tech, U.S . Department of Justice, EU, European People's Party, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, U.S, Europe

☆ 'Qatargate' scandal casts light on 'untouchable' EU lawmakers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 20 (Reuters) - As a corruption scandal rocks the European Parliament, lawmakers and campaign groups say a lack of asset declarations, little reporting on contacts with third countries and barely any sanctions created an environment where rule-breaking could go unpunished or undetected. Prosecutors suspect Greek member of the European Parliament (MEP) Eva Kaili and three others accepted bribes from recent soccer World Cup host Qatar in a bid to influence European Union policymaking. The case, widely dubbed "Qatargate" in the media, is one of the biggest scandals to hit the 27-nation bloc. They also urged the European Commission to put forward a proposal for an independent ethics body as soon as possible. ($1 = 0.9433 euros)Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; additional reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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