Macron travels to Nuuk to stand with Greenland and Denmark against the US
In this context, it is hardly surprising that Macron is being welcomed with open arms in Greenland, where he is scheduled to stop on Sunday, June 15, en route to the G7 summit opening in Canada that same evening. The visit is unprecedented in several respects: Not only will it be the first time a French president has traveled to the island, but Macron will also be the first foreign head of state to visit Nuuk since Trump threatened annexation and the resulting diplomatic crisis between Copenhagen and Washington.
Notably, unlike US Vice President JD Vance and his spouse, who had to limit their March 28 visit to the Pituffik military base due to protests from local residents and political leaders opposed to their arrival, the French president was officially invited by Greenland's prime minister, who also extended the invitation to Denmark's head of government, Mette Frederiksen.
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Euronews
an hour ago
- Euronews
Fact check: Which European country has the most public holidays?
A debate has erupted in France over whether the country's population works hard enough, after Prime Minister François Bayrou suggested getting rid of two public holidays to boost the economy. "The entire nation needs to work more to produce and for the country's overall activity to be more significant throughout the year, so that France's situation improves," Bayrou said at a press conference on 15 July. "Therefore, I propose that two public holidays be removed for the entire country." The prime minister suggested, for example, getting rid of Easter Monday, as it has "no religious significance" compared to Easter Sunday, and 8 May, which celebrates the end of World War II in Europe. The proposal has sparked a discussion in French media and among social media users about how the country compares to its neighbours when it comes to public holidays, whether the French really do work less than other Europeans, and whether getting rid of public holidays would really help France's ailing economy. Bayrou claims that removing two such days would bring in tax revenues generated from economic activity, contributing to around €44 billion in overall savings. The French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, however, has projected a 0.06% boost to the economy, should the prime minister's plan go ahead. Official numbers from European Employment Services (EURES) reveal how many public holidays people in European Union member states, Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland have. Euroverify also examined information from the UK government. When comparing these figures, Cyprus is the clear winner for the number of public holidays, ranking at the top with 15 days. It is followed by Bulgaria, Croatia, Iceland, Malta and Spain, which compete for second place with 14. At the other end of the spectrum, we see Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands with just nine public holidays. However, when the United Kingdom is split into its constituent countries, England and Wales are at the bottom with eight days. Scotland has nine and Northern Ireland has ten. The comparison means that, with 11 public holidays, France ranks fairly average among European countries as things stand, coming in alongside Greece, Hungary, Luxembourg, Slovenia and Sweden. However, getting rid of two days would rank it among the lowest. Holidays can vary by region and even year Nevertheless, in true European fashion, there are various caveats and exceptions to the number of holidays that certain countries have. For example, many countries contain regions that have different numbers of public holidays compared to the national amount. This is the case in Switzerland, where different cantons have different bank holidays, which can reach as high as 15. The French regions of Alsace and Moselle also get two extra days compared to the rest of the country, and the Portuguese islands of Madeira and the Azores have more days off than the mainland. Sometimes the number of public holidays in European countries can vary by year, and some have half days off for some public holidays. This is the case in Iceland, for example, which counts Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve as public holidays after noon. Additionally, while Euroverify has not counted public holidays that consistently fall on a Sunday, such as Easter Sunday, in its ranking, sometimes the way the weekends fall does affect how many days off a country gets. For example, France and other countries effectively lose a bank holiday if it falls on a weekend, whereas the likes of the UK provide "substitute days" in this case. In practice, it means workers will have the following Monday or Tuesday off if a public holiday happens on Saturday or Sunday. Has anywhere in Europe ever scrapped any bank holidays before? Bayrou's proposal to remove two public holidays isn't without precedent in Europe, and this can yield some insight into whether his plan would pay off. Most recently, Slovakia's government decided in June to stop giving 17 November (Day for the Struggle for Freedom and Democracy) as a day off, as part of a broader fiscal strategy not too dissimilar to the French proposals. The day will still be officially recognised, however. In 2023, Denmark abolished its Great Day of Prayer, celebrated on the fourth Friday after Easter, to try and boost labour output and defence spending. Although estimates from the International Monetary Fund said that it only increased the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 0.01-0.06%. Back in 2012, the Portuguese government announced that it would scrap four public holidays the following year as part of an austerity drive off the back of the financial crisis: All Saints Day on 1 November; Corpus Christi, 60 days after Easter; Republic Day on 5 October; and the Restoration of Independence Day on 1 December, celebrating Portugual's indepence from Spanish rule. The days were supposed to be suspended for five years, with those of religious significance having been negotiated with the Vatican. However, in 2016, the newly elected socialist government reinstated all four holidays early, overturning a deeply unpopular measure. It's not all about public holidays Official public holidays are, of course, only one measure of how much time workers in a European country get off. Europe in Motion reported in March that Andorra, Malta and Albania are the countries offering the most statutory annual leave across the continent, with France landing in the top half too. Bulgaria gives the most maternity leave in Europe, on the other hand, and Bulgarian primary school students get the most school summer holidays — 15 weeks — compared to their neighbours.
Local France
11 hours ago
- Local France
European powers plan fresh nuclear talks with Iran: German diplomatic source
The European powers, known as the E3, "are in contact with Iran to schedule further talks for the coming week", the source said, following warnings from the trio that international sanctions against Iran could be reactivated if Tehran does not resume negotiations. Iran's Tasnim news agency also reported that Tehran had agreed to hold talks with the three European countries, citing an unnamed source. Consultations are ongoing regarding a date and location for the talks, the report said. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a call Friday with his British, French and German counterparts and European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. During the call, the Europeans warned that if Iran did not return to talks soon, they would activate a so-called "snapback" mechanism to reimpose sanctions lifted in a 2015 deal to curb Tehran's nuclear output. Iran and the United States had held several rounds of nuclear negotiations through Omani mediators before Israel launched its 12-day war against Iran on June 13. However, US President Donald Trump's decision to join Israel in striking Iranian nuclear facilities effectively ended the talks. Advertisement "Iran must never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon. That is why Germany, France and the United Kingdom are continuing to work intensively in the E3 format to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear programme," the German source said. Iran denies it is pursuing nuclear weapons. The 2015 deal between Iran and world powers, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), placed significant restrictions on Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. But the hard-won deal began to unravel in 2018, during Trump's first presidency, when the United States walked away from it and reimposed sanctions on Iran. "If no solution is reached over the summer, snapback remains an option for the E3," the German source said.
LeMonde
12 hours ago
- LeMonde
The day Silicon Valley's oligarchs kissed Trump's ring
The seating plan, orchestrated by Donald Trump, had been deliberately designed to place them directly beneath a painting of a historic surrender: that of the British General John Burgoyne in 1777 to George Washington, the future first president of the United States, to whom Trump sometimes compares himself. But did they even notice? At that moment, the tech industry's leading executives seemed preoccupied with the cameras filming them, lined up in neat rows as they awaited the start of the inauguration ceremony on January 20. The whole world witnessed the scene, without knowing what was happening backstage. And yet, all the protagonists were there, at the heart of the Capitol, a symbol of American democracy that Trump supporters had stormed on January 6, 2021, or hidden away in the back rooms of power. Here is the place to start to understand this new nomenklatura, which made its fortune in less than a quarter-century by embedding itself into our lives. Even before entering the rotunda, where the crème de la crème of the guests were set to attend the ceremony, the first attendees heard the thunderous commotion that often signals Jeff Bezos's arrival, flanked by his assistants, a makeup artist and bodyguards. Within the empire that his company, Amazon, has become, he is a ruthless and blunt leader. With a "low tolerance for stupidity," his executives say, as if to excuse him. On the outside, he is the opposite: friendly, jovial, attentive to others and extremely flexible in his politics. In short, a good-natured person. Not long ago, the billionaire who transformed online retail – and, often, the labor market – with his all-encompassing delivery services, was still seen as a staunch Democrat. The Washington Post, the prestigious newspaper he bought in 2013, had endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016 and then Joe Biden in 2020. But business is business.
