Opposition forces in France are using the president’s unpopularity to push for a new constitution. It’s a dangerous game.
Speaking in Strasbourg on 9 May, Emmanuel Macron called on the “democratic European nations adhering to our core values” to “find a new area of political cooperation, security and cooperation”.
Ludovic Marin/AFP
Inspired by François Mitterrand’s idea of a European confederation, French president Emmanuel Macron has outlined the idea of a political body that would be separate from the EU.
Charles de Gaulle created a system where a surprise candidate can upend the presidential elections in France. Will it happen in 2022?
French President Emmanuel Macron talks to U.S. President Joe Biden at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization headquarters in Brussels on June 14, 2021.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Despite a ‘major breach of trust,’ the recent spat between France and the US corresponds to a long cycle of conflict and rapprochement between the two countries.
French president Emmanuel Macron lays a wreath on a mass grave at the Kigali Genocide Memorial on 27 May 2021.
EPA-EFE/Eugene Uwimana
Using the physical representation of a public figure to provoke an emotional response and encourage a certain action is a well-known strategy. Can it work for the COVID-19 vaccine?
President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who died on Wednesday 2 December following the Covid-19.
Jacques Demarthon/AFP
The fire that devastated the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral on April 15 is a historic event that reminds us of the symbolic power of national monuments.
The euro just turned 20.
Marc Osborne/Shutterstock.com
While the euro’s survival for two decades is evidence of its success, it was born with fundamental problems that have weakened it, leading to near-constant crisis.
French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte after a meeting with the Romanian president at the Elysee presidential palace (November 27, 2018).
Bertrand Gauy/AFP
With some “Gilet jaune” protestors calling for the removal of Emmanuel Macron, the French constitution is being criticized anew for concentrating too much power in the hands of the president.
Macron’s portrait and taste in literature are full of political symbols to be sussed.
In a heated presidential debate, Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron argued over each other like a pair of bickering teenagers as their parents watched on, confused.
Reuters
The French must choose between two visions – one from Macron that looks externally to EU partners in trade and security, or one from Le Pen that closes France’s borders and yearns for a ‘Frexit’.
Benôit Hamon casts his vote in Trappes, France on April 23.
Julien de Rosa/EPA
With its share of the vote rising with each election, can the extreme-right party take power on its own? The example of the French communists during the postwar boom suggests otherwise.
France’s relationships with its former African colonies has become ambivalent.
Reuters/Pascal Rossignol
French and African presidents have, in the past, entertained close relationships outside official channels. These often included illegitimate exchanges. But there are signs that this is changing.
The French National Assembly, where the surveillance bill was passed.
Ian Langsdon/EPA