Tag: Francois Hollande

INTERVIEW / Ahead of an EU summit in Brussels, Thierry Repentin has dismissed as bluster the recent spate of attacks by French ministers against the European Commission. EurActiv France reports.

The French President has reportedly called for swift action to resolve an escalating trade war with China over solar power imports, after the Chinese government threatened to drag the wine industry into the row.

At a joint news conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande defended his comment that the EU executive cannot "dictate" reforms to member states – a defiant, nationalist tone that angered Germany's ruling conservatives.

Italy said French President François Hollande's call for a joint European economic government should be considered, Foreign Minister Emma Bonino said on Friday (17 May).

A draft resolution in the ruling French Socialist leaked over the weekend has revealed deep hostility towards German-led austerity policies in the European Union. The draft text has since been amended but the episode exposes a deep ideological fracture between the eurozone’s two largest economies.

French President François Hollande has given EU foreign ministers until end of May to negotiate lifting the bloc’s arms embargo on Syria and give the coalition the weapons it needs to fight the regime of Bashar Al-Assad. But Germany and others have reiterated their reservations, warning of a potential regional escalation of the conflict.

French President François Hollande positioned himself as a promoter of growth and solidarity and tried to woo MEPs on the EU's long-term budget as he spoke to the European Parliament in Strasbourg yesterday (5 February). EurActiv France reports.

France’s François Hollande and Germany's Angela Merkel broadly agreed on a roadmap for deepening the economic and monetary union (EMU) during a two-day summit, which ended in Brussels today (14 December). But they described new contractual schemes to support economic reforms in eurozone states in characteristically contrasting terms.

While Germany, Britain, Finland and Sweden have all taken up a clear positions on cutting the EU 2014-2020 budget, the point of view of the French government remains obscure, EurActiv.fr reports.

France's government begins a review of the world's most nuclear-dependent country's energy policy on Friday (14 September), strongly in support of its small and ailing renewables sector in an effort to boost local jobs and growth.

A slim majority of French, 52%, want the new European Union budgetary treaty to go to a referendum, while 53% say they would vote yes, says a study by French market research group OpinionWay. EurActiv.fr reports.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has resisted pressure for common eurozone bonds or a more flexible use of Europe's rescue funds but agreed with leaders of France, Italy and Spain on a €130 billion package to revive growth.

The Socialist Party of President François Hollande won a historic victory in parliamentary elections held yesterday (17 June) and will dominate both legislative chambers. EurActiv France reports.

Germany's Angela Merkel criticised France's economic performance on Friday (15 June), warning against "mediocrity" in tackling Europe's deepening debt crisis as discussions continued over greater fiscal and economic integration in the eurozone.

François Hollande has brought 'growth' into the political discourse, but now he needs to deliver on his promise and convince EU leaders to get out of the current immobility, writes Party of European Socialists general secretary, Philip Cordery.

French President François Hollande said he would promote the idea of mutualised European debt at an informal summit in Brussels this week, increasing pressure on German Chancellor Angela Merkel to drop her opposition to the proposal.