PARIS (Reuters) – France and its European allies plan to submit proposals to the European Commission that are designed to strengthen Europe’s capacity to defend its economic interests, France’s finance minister said on Friday. “There is a realisation among all European states what we cannot keep going in the direction we are headed today whereby we submit to American decisions,” Bruno Le Maire told reporters when Europe’s response to U.S. sanctions on Iran. Europe needed to toughen rules dating back to 1996, he said, adding: “France, together with other European partners, hopes to present proposals to the European Commission which go in this sense.” (Reporting by Richard Lough and Leigh Thomas; Editing by Luke Baker) … [Read more...] about France, European allies drawing up plans to bolster economic sovereignty
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France vows pushback against U.S. sanctions on Iran
PARIS (Reuters) – France pledged on Friday to push back against the threat of U.S. sanctions against French companies doing business with Iran, in the wake of Washington’s withdrawal from the international nuclear agreement with Tehran. The French government is seeking waivers and longer transition periods from the United States for companies such as Renault and Total, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said, while pressing for European Union measures to improve the bloc’s “economic sovereignty” in the longer term. “It’s time that European countries opened their eyes,” Le Maire said on Europe 1 radio. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal risks exposing European countries that have since invested in Iran to renewed U.S. sanctions after “wind-down” periods of three to six months expire. Europe needs new “financial instruments allowing it to be independent from the United … [Read more...] about France vows pushback against U.S. sanctions on Iran
France: Europe isn’t US ‘vassal,’ should trade with Iran
Associated Press Published 2:53 pm, Friday, May 11, 2018 Photo: Brendan Smialowski / AFP / Getty Images Image 1of/1 CaptionClose Image 1 of 1 France Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Europe should not accept the U.S. as the “world’s economic policeman.” France Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Europe should not accept the U.S. as the “world’s economic policeman.” Photo: Brendan Smialowski / AFP / Getty Images France: Europe isn’t US ‘vassal,’ should trade with Iran 1 / 1 Back to Gallery PARIS — France’s finance minister says European countries should push back harder against the Trump administration over the Iran nuclear deal and not act as “vassals” to the U.S. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the U.S. withdrawal from the … [Read more...] about France: Europe isn’t US ‘vassal,’ should trade with Iran
Air France-KLM suffers fall in April traffic numbers, blames French strikes
PARIS (Reuters) – Air France-KLM <AIRF.PA> on Friday said traffic had fallen 2.6 percent in April and blamed a wave of strikes over pay conditions at the French brand, that last week forced the chief-executive of the Franco-Dutch group to resign. Air France needs to cut costs to keep up with leaner rivals in Europe, including its sister company KLM, but it has come up against strong resistance from unions representing its pilots, cabin crews and ground staff. Air France employees’ reluctance to back reforms and the ensuing management fall-out inside the airline has left some aviation analysts asking how long the alliance may last. KLM passenger numbers rose by 5.2 percent year-on-year in April, while Air France’s dropped 8.7 percent, reflecting the diverging fortunes of the two brands. Overall, the group carried 8.2 million passengers, down 2.5 percent from a year ago. Jean-Marc Janaillac said last Friday that he was resigning as CEO after staff rejected a pay … [Read more...] about Air France-KLM suffers fall in April traffic numbers, blames French strikes
France’s Macron backs European unity amid US tensions
Updated 4:15 am, Thursday, May 10, 2018 window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-5', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 5', target_type: 'mix' }); _taboola.push({flush: true}); window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-9', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 9', target_type: 'mix' }); _taboola.push({flush: true}); Photo: Martin Meissner, AP Image 1of/9 CaptionClose Image 1 of 9 French President Emmanuel Macron speaks on occasion of the Charlemagne Prize awarding to French President Emmanuel Macron in Aachen, Germany, Thursday, May 10, 2018. French President Emmanuel Macron speaks on occasion of the Charlemagne Prize awarding to French President Emmanuel Macron in Aachen, Germany, Thursday, … [Read more...] about France’s Macron backs European unity amid US tensions