Spotlight on Arabic performances as Avignon festival gets underway
07/07/2025
Neighbour makes daring rescue of family trapped in burning Paris flat
07/07/2025
BRICS nations slam Trump tariffs, condemn strikes on Iran
07/07/2025
Poland reinstates border controls with Germany, Lithuania amid migration fears
07/07/2025
Netanyahu heads to Washington but will 'victory lap' be overshadowed by Gaza?
07/07/2025
Texas flood death toll mounts as questions asked over warning system
07/07/2025
'Netanyahu wants to perpetuate status quo: No agreement, no political framework, no Gaza withdrawal'
Middle East
06/07/2025
Oasis: What's the story? "A man with a fork in a world of soup"
UK
06/07/2025
San Fermin bull-running festival kicks off in Spain
Europe
06/07/2025
Brics countries meet in Brazil and focus to moderate agenda
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France 24
34 minutes ago
- France 24
Macron, Starmer hammer out migrant deal details as French president wraps UK visit
London and Paris were working Thursday to thrash out a deal on undocumented migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats on the last day of the French president's state visit to Britain. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and France 's Emmanuel Macron posed for the cameras outside Downing Street, as they headed inside for a summit with senior ministers focused on the thorny issue and other shared concerns. They include the volatile situation in the Middle East, continued support for Ukraine and a "reboot" of defence ties including joint missile development and nuclear co-operation. The two leaders admitted Wednesday the need for a "new deterrent" to curb the small boat crossings, as support for the anti-immigrant Reform UK party soars. The UK would tackle undocumented migration with "new tactics" and a "new level of intent", Starmer said in summit opening remarks, adding: "We will agree the situation in the English Channel cannot go on as it is." A so-called "one in, one out" migrant deal, details of which were reportedly still being discussed, would see migrants sent back to France in return for the UK accepting a similar number of migrants with strong asylum cases. The scheme, which has sparked "serious concerns" among some other European nations, could initially involve around 50 migrants a week, the French daily Le Monde reported. It would be scaled up later if a pilot scheme demonstrated "proof of concept", The Times newspaper added, quoting a UK government source. Pomp and politics The more than 21,000 migrants who have crossed from northern France to southeast England in rudimentary vessels this year alone has become a major political headache for Starmer. During a meeting with Macron on Wednesday, Starmer outlined his government's policies to tackle issues such as illegal working, a Downing Street spokesperson said. Illegal employment opportunities are one of the "pull factors" which France claims has made the UK particularly attractive to migrants. Thursday's summit follows two days of events spanning pomp and politics, trade and culture for Macron and his wife Brigitte. The French first couple were welcomed on Tuesday by King Charles III and Queen Camilla with a horse-drawn carriage procession, a 41-gun salute and a banquet at Windsor Castle, west of London. Macron and Charles toasted a new "entente amicale" at the lavish state banquet, hailing the importance of cross-Channel relations amid various emergent threats. Ukraine focus As part of a mooted defence agreement, the UK and France would order more Storm Shadow cruise missiles – long-range, air-launched weapons jointly developed by the allies – while stepping up work on a replacement system, the UK defence ministry said. The missiles have been shipped to Ukraine in significant numbers to help Kyiv in its war with Russia following Moscow's full-scale 2022 invasion. Starmer and Macron will also on Thursday dial into a meeting of the so-called "coalition of the willing" on Ukraine. Britain and France are spearheading talks among the 30-nation coalition on how to support a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, including potentially deploying peacekeeping forces. Starmer's office said this week that the call would "discuss stepping up support for Ukraine and further increasing pressure on Russia". They will speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to the French presidency. The state visit also saw Macron formally announce the loan of the famous Bayeux Tapestry, depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England, to the British Museum for 10 months from September 2026. In return, London will lend French museums the collection from the Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo site, one of England's most important archaeological sites, as well as other medieval "treasures".
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Green activism or public threat? UK cracks down on environmental groups
Green activism or public threat? UK cracks down on environmental groups Environment To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. Accept Manage my choices One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site. Try again In the UK, the crackdown on environmental activists is becoming ever tighter, with many protesters now jailed for their actions. © FRANCE 24 02:58 02:58 min From the show In the UK, an ongoing crackdown on environmental activists is becoming ever tighter. Those who cause "public nuisance" by sitting on a road to block it, or spraying paint on a building or work of art can now be punished not by a simple fine, but a prison sentence of up to 10 years. It's part of the 2022 Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act. Over the past three years, more than 3,000 members of Just Stop Oil and other groups have been arrested. The British government has justified this crackdown by saying that the groups' actions cost tens of millions of pounds in public spending every year. The Down to Earth team takes a closer look.
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Volkswagen halts electric minivan exports to the United States
While subject to a recall in the United States, the German-made ID. Buzz is also subject to a new 25 percent tariff "No electric ID. Buzz models made in Hanover are currently being delivered to North America due to a technical recall mandated by US authorities," Tobias Riepe, a spokesman for Volkswagen's commercial vehicles division, told AFP. The van's rear seats are "deemed too wide for the vehicle", Riepe said. Citing company insiders, however, German business daily Handelsblatt reported the main reason was high tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. Manufactured in Hanover, the ID. Buzz has since April been subject to a new US tariff of 25-percent on imported cars that are not largely made within North America. That has made exporting the ID. Buzz into the United States untenable, according to Handelsblatt. Foreign carmakers have scrambled to respond to Trump's levies, with high-end automaker Mercedes-Benz on Monday saying it had delayed some US deliveries in the expectation of tariffs coming back down. Volkswagen itself reported declining US deliveries in the first half of the year, with vehicle shipments plunging 16.2 percent in the three months from April, after the duties came into force. On Wednesday, German chancellor Friedrich Merz said he was "cautiously optimistic" that the United States and European Union could strike a trade agreement by the end of the month that would benefit key German industries like autos and machine-making. © 2025 AFP
