Paris, France | AFP | One day after the blaze that scarred Notre-Dame, President Emmanuel Macron addressed a nation in shock at the damage to one of its great cultural landmarks, with a promise that rang as clearly as the peal of the cathedral’s bells. “We will rebuild the cathedral even …
Read More »No UN breakthrough: Iran rules out talks as US intensifies sanctions
United Nations, United States | AFP | Iran’s president on Wednesday closed the door on meeting Donald Trump despite last-minute European efforts to ease tensions as the United States again ramped up punishing sanctions. French President Emmanuel Macron had shuttled between his US and Iranian counterparts over two days at the …
Read More »Will Trump meet Iran’s Rouhani at UN?
United Nations, United States | AFP | Will US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani finally hold a historic meeting during the UN General Assembly this week? All eyes are on the pair in New York, where France’s Emmanuel Macron is cautiously hopeful for a breakthrough. Building the suspense, …
Read More »Climate change activists on trial in Paris for stealing Macron portraits
Paris, France | AFP | Eight activists went on trial in Paris on Wednesday for stealing official portraits of French President Emmanuel Macron from public buildings as part of a protest over climate change. The activists, aged 23 to 36, have been charged with theft after taking down the pictures from …
Read More »Trump in Warsaw, 80 years after WWII outbreak
Warsaw, Poland | AFP | US President Donald Trump, fresh from hob-nobbing with his G7 partners at a glitzy French resort town, will on Sunday attend sombre commemorations in Warsaw of the outbreak of World War II 80 years ago. Trump will be the first US head of state to come …
Read More »Could Trump gamble big on Iran? Skepticism reigns
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump is not afraid of surprises but could he take one of the biggest shifts of all in his foreign policy — easing sanctions on Iran? Washington is widely skeptical that Trump will shift course on Iran, with his hawkish advisors long …
Read More »Tamer Trump on show at G7, but brash US leader never far
Biarritz, France | AFP | Like Superman disguised as the mild-mannered Clark Kent, Donald Trump showed his tamer side at the G7 — but the maverick showman expected by the world didn’t take long to burst back out. Before the summit in France’s Biarritz, speculation was rife over how Trump might …
Read More »African forest fires in spotlight after Amazon outcry
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | In NASA satellite images, forest fires in central Africa appear to burn alarmingly like a red chain from Gabon to Angola similar to the blazes in Brazil’s Amazon that sparked global outcry. At the G7 summit this week, French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted about the …
Read More »Johnson seeks to push Trump at fractious G7
Biarritz, France | AFP | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will on Sunday seek to persuade President Donald Trump to offer flexibility on trade and also win concessions from the EU on Brexit, at a G7 summit hosted by France marked by stark divisions. Johnson was to hold his long-awaited first …
Read More »Macron, Putin see chance on Ukraine but clash on Syria
Bormes-les-Mimosas, France | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron and Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Monday agreed changes in Ukraine had bolstered the chances of peace in its east but clashed on Syria, as the Russian leader made a rare bilateral visit to a key EU power. Macron, who hosted Putin at …
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