MEP Marion Marechal, the niece of Marine Le Pen and who leads a separate far-right movement, will also attend the conference, held in Jerusalem on March 26 and 27.

Both politicians were invited by Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister for the diaspora and a member of the right-wing Likud party. 

While National Rally representatives have visited Israel before, this is the first time such high-level figures have been invited to this type of conference.

“Jordan Bardella will deliver a speech on the rise of anti-Semitism in France since October 7,” a source close to Bardella told France’s AFP news agency, referring to the 7 October attack by Hamas on Israel in  2023.

“My presence in Jerusalem for this major conference against anti-Semitism demonstrates our absolute commitment to this fight,” Bardella told the JDD newswpaper. “RN is no longer the National Front.”

Shift away from past anti-Semitism

The National Front (FN) was co-founded by Marine Le Pen’s father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who died earlier this year. Known for his anti-Semitic remarks, he declared in 1987 that the Nazi gas chambers used to exterminate Jews were “just a detail in the history of World War II”.

Marine Le Pen has strived to distance the movement from her father’s legacy, renaming the party the RN in 2018 and seeking to make it electable.

Last month Bardella abruptly withdrew from a meeting of conservatives in the US, citing concerns over a gesture made by former Trump advisor Steve Bannon that he described as ‘alluding to Nazi ideology’.

However, during last summer’s legislative elections, several RN candidates were involved in scandals over anti-Semititic, racist or homophobic remarks on social media. 

France’s far right tries to move away from past anti-Semitism

Mixed reactions

France’s council of Jewish insitutions (Crif) has yet to react to the upcoming visit, though a source within the Jewish community told Le Parisien they were “very uncomfortable”.

Writer and philosopher Bernard Henri-Levy, who is Jewish, told Le Monde he had withdrawn from the conference due to the two politicians. 

Meyer Habib, a former right-wing lawmaker and staunch defender of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, welcomed the invitation. “I have a problem with the RN’s historical DNA, but since 7 October, they have been impeccable,” he told Le Parisien. “Why should they not be invited? We need to stop talking about political quarantine.”

Anti-Semitic hate trial opens for French far-right veteran Jean-Marie Le Pen

Shifting positions on Israel

Bardella’s visit is part of a broader diplomatic shift in Israel as the Netanyahu government, under pressure from the hard right, seeks to forge closer relations with several far-right parties in Europe.

Argentina’s president Javier Milei and other far-right politicians in Europe are reportedly on the conference guest-list.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar recently lifted a ban preventing Israeli diplomats from engaging with far-right European parties. Ambassador Joshua Zarka defended the decision, stating that Israel now talks with all political groups willing to engage.

Maréchal, who once supported a two-state solution, has hardened her stance since the 7 October attack, arguing Hamas would turn Palestine into an Islamic caliphate.

Bardella has taken a similar stance, underlining that a Palestinian state would “legitimise Hamas”.

Mathieu Lefèvre, an MP with the President Emmanuel Macron‘s Renaissance party and head of the France-Israel friendship group, remains skeptical over the politicians’ commitment to battle anti-Semitism.

“The RN still includes figures linked to Holocaust denial,” he warned, calling the visit a dangerous attempt to normalise the party’s image.

In November 2023, Macron attacked the RN, without naming it, accusing the movement of “claiming to support our compatriots of Jewish faith by confusing the rejection of Muslims with support for Jews”. His remarks followed RN’s controversial participation in a huge rally against anti-Semitism following the 7 October attacks.

Putin’s remarks from the Kremlin on Thursday signalled a willingness to engage in talks while making it clear that Russia would not settle for a ceasefire without securing strategic gains.

Speaking to the press after a meeting with Belorussian leader Alexander Lukashenko, the Russian president stressed that any truce must address “the original causes of this crisis,” suggesting that significant concessions would be required – including Ukraine dropping its NATO ambitions, Russia securing full control over the territories it claims, and Western sanctions being eased.

His calibrated response appeared designed to project goodwill towards Washington while ensuring that Moscow retains the upper hand. “We agree with the proposals to cease hostilities,” Putin said, before adding, “But we proceed from the fact that this cessation should lead to long-term peace”.

US President Donald Trump, eager to cement his image as a dealmaker, described Putin’s statement as “very promising” but acknowledged that Russia’s true willingness to negotiate remains uncertain. His administration’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has been in discussions with Russian officials in Moscow to determine whether a workable agreement can be reached.

Ukraine, however, remains deeply sceptical. President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Putin of using preconditions as a stalling tactic.

“That’s why in Moscow they are imposing upon the idea of a ceasefire these conditions – so that nothing happens at all, or so that it cannot happen for as long as possible,” Zelensky stated in his nightly address.

G7 divisions

As developments unfold in Moscow and Kyiv, G7 foreign ministers – representing Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US – have been meeting in Charlevoix, Québec to coordinate their response.

However, deep divisions have emerged over how to navigate Washington’s increasingly conciliatory stance towards Moscow.

Under Trump, the US has softened its rhetoric, now referring to the war as the “Russia-Ukraine conflict” rather than an “invasion” or “aggression”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has urged the G7 to adopt a less confrontational tone, arguing that overly aggressive language could undermine diplomatic efforts to bring the war to an end.

France leads Europe’s big five in pushing for stronger Ukraine defence

This shift has unsettled European allies, who fear it signals a willingness to strike a deal with Moscow that could weaken Ukraine’s position. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned,“Peace in Europe will only come through strength. What good is a ceasefire that would then lead to even more suffering, destruction and war in Europe after two or four years?”

French officials attending the G7 talks have also voiced concern over Washington’s evolving position. One diplomat, speaking anonymously to the AFP news agency, remarked: “The ambiguity in Washington’s position is unsettling. If the US pushes too hard for a settlement on Russia’s terms, it risks weakening Ukraine irreparably”.

French President Emmanuel Macron, a vocal advocate for European strategic autonomy, has consistently pushed for a firmer stance against Russian aggression. However, France remains committed to diplomatic efforts – provided that Ukraine’s territorial integrity is not sacrificed in the process.

France hails ‘progress’ of Ukraine ceasefire deal, says onus is now on Russia

Finding common ground

Despite their differences, G7 ministers are working to forge a united position that balances ongoing support for Ukraine with the need for a realistic path to peace. A final communiqué is expected to endorse the ceasefire proposal while carefully avoiding full alignment with Trump’s approach.

“If the G7 cannot present a united front, it only benefits countries like China and Russia and sends a message to the Global South,” warned Japanese foreign ministry spokesman Toshihiro Kitamura.

Another diplomat acknowledged to AFP the challenges but noted that progress was being made: “Everyone is sticking to their positions, although not in a way that seeks to attack others”.

Beyond the immediate issue of Ukraine, tensions within the G7 have been further strained by Trump’s economic policies, including sweeping tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

European and Canadian officials have warned that such moves could damage transatlantic relations while strengthening China’s global position.

(With newswires)

His latest salvo was a response to the European Union’s unveiling of tariffs on $28 billion (€27 billion) in US goods, to be imposed in stages starting in April.

The EU measures – including a 50 percent tariff on American whiskey – were a tit-for-tat measure against Trump’s levies on steel and aluminum imports that took effect Wednesday.

“If this tariff is not removed immediately, the US will shortly place a 200% tariff on all wines, champagnes and alcoholic products coming out of France and other EU represented countries,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

France will ‘not give in’ to threats

French producers say the tariffs could result in a dramitc increase in the price of French champagne and spirits in the US.

One French wine and champagne company – Taittinger – said a 200 percent tariff could bring the cost of some bottles from about $60 to more than $180 (€165).

France’s federation of wine and spirit exporters, known by the acronym FEVS, put the blame on the European Commission for placing its members “directly into the crosshairs of the US president”.

“We are fed up with being systematically sacrificed for issues unrelated to our own,” said the group’s director general Nicolas Ozanam.

French Foreign Trade Minister Laurent Saint-Martin, wrote on social media platform X that France “will not give in to threats” and is “determined to retaliate”.

French wine exports fall amid trade tensions and threat of US tariffs

American distillers dismayed

American distillers are also dismayed by the EU’s planned levy on US whiskey.

Chris Swonger, head of the Distilled Spirits Council, called the tariffs “deeply disappointing,” warning that reimposing such measures could hurt US distillers and farmers.

A similar tariff in 2018 resulted in a 20 percent drop in American whiskey exports to Europe.

What are Trump’s reciprocal tariffs and who may be hit?

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Bloomberg Television he plans to speak with European officials, though details remain unclear.

Since taking office, Trump has engaged in multiple trade battles, using tariffs to pressure both rivals and allies alike.

His latest move follows the EU’s decision to impose levies on $28 billion worth of US goods, rolling out in phases from April.

Those measures – including a sharp tariff hike on American whiskey – are themselves in response to Trump’s recently implemented duties on steel and aluminium imports.

Wider trade conflicts

Trump’s tariff wars have not been limited to the EU.

Canada, Mexico, and China have all been targeted, with tariffs imposed on goods like steel, aluminium, and copper.

China, in particular, has retaliated with duties of up to 15 percent on US agricultural products such as soybeans and chicken, vowing “all necessary measures” in response.

Meanwhile, financial markets remain on edge over the uncertainty of Trump’s trade policies.

Despite the turbulence, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent downplayed concerns, maintaining that Washington remains focused on long-term economic strategies, including deregulation and privatisation.

The High Council for the Climate (HCC), a body comprising an array of leading economists, agronomists and scientists, says that there is a gap between the cash alloted to the transition and the real cost of implementing the changes.

“Funding for adaptation in the NCCP3 remains highly inadequate,” says the HCC report which was published on Thursday.

“The actions in NCCP3 that require immediate investment must be identified as quickly as possible,” it adds. “Part of the public funding earmarked for risk prevention and the ecological transition towards adaptation is provided for in the PNACC3 but much of the funding has yet to be defined, and the funding available at this stage is inadequate.”

The HCC report suggests the publication of a detailed multi-year financing plan following a 1.35 billion euro cut to a budget for the transition.

“Funding dedicated to adaptation by the agencies appear in the PNACC3 as budgetary support for a number of actions. The budget breakdown of these actions is not specified. The worsening impacts of climate change will require increased funding for adaptation.”

France rolls out plan to prepare for 4C temperature rise by end of century

Report

PNACC3 outlined some 50 measures, from increased protection for workers to various studies to better prepare transport systems and farming.

Launching the document, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, the minister for ecological transition, said: “There is the scientific fact that climate change is already affecting the whole of France. Five thousand kilometres of French coastline – i.e. 20 percent of our coastline is already affected by coastal erosion. One and a half million people are at risk of marine submersion.

“There is an economic observation: if France does not adapt to climate disruption, the consequences will be severe. Faced with these facts, my line is clear: prepare, anticipate, act.”

HCC chairman Jean-François Soussana told the French news agency AFP that the PNACC3 was an important step towards adaptation but the government could not carry the load.

“The state will not be able to do everything,” he said. “You can also ask for efforts to be made by tightening up standards. For example, the introduction of summer comfort standards for buildings and the cost of that would fall mainly on private players.”

Climate body says France must improve ‘fragile’ gains on global warming

As well as highlighting the financial cracks in the PNACC3, the body, which was established by President Emmanuel Macron  in 2018, recommends more focus on the adaptation.

“Given the multitude of areas sensitive to climate change, interministerial coordination of its implementation is important,” adds the HCC report.

The experts warn that more monitoring is needed.

“Despite the efforts made, not all the lessons learned from the first two NCCAPs have been fully applied. PNACC3 does not provide any feedback on the effectiveness of the measures proposed in previous plans (PNACC1, PNACC2) and does not propose any evaluation criteria to assess the progress made in PNACC3.”

The enquiry aims to determine whether the app “encourages suicidal behavior and self-harm” or if it “amplifies” the availability of hypersexualised content, which could “contribute to the development of disorders”, said centrist lawmaker Laure Miller, who brought the proposal before parliament.

“TikTok has more than 15 million monthly users in France,” said Miller, adding that while the social network is officially prohibited for the under-13s, many children aged 12 and younger have accounts.

She also argued that TikTok has “the most opaque and probably the least effective content moderation policy” of all social platforms.

TikTok’s journey from fun app to US security concern

‘Dopamine slot machine’

The resolution to create the commission received cross party support in a vote on Thursday evening in the National Assembly, although only 23 MP were present.

“TikTok is a dopamine slot machine,” said Socialist lawmaker Arthur Delaporte.

In November, seven families filed a joint legal complaint against TikTok in France, accusing the video platform of exposing their teenage children to content about suicide, self-harm, eating disorders and other mental health problems.

Parents in France take TikTok to court over self-harm content aimed at children

While the commission will not be able to investigate ongoing cases, it will look into whether or not the app proposes more dangerous content to vulnerable groups.

In 2022, a US study suggested that young users who expressed distress on the platform were shown, on average, twelve times more videos related to suicide and self-harm.

Last February, the European Union opened an investigation into whether TikTok does enough to protect minors.

On Tuesday, TikTok rolled out a new feature across the EU allowing parents to limit the time teenagers spend on the app.

Ahead of France’s decision to set up a commission of inquiry, the company said the issues targeted by the commission were “not unique to TikTok”.

The five defence ministers acknowledged the challenges posed by the new administration of Donald Trump in the US, while insisting Europe was ready to stand on its own feet.

“There is obviously a very broad consensus emerging… that the first of the security guarantees for Ukraine is obviously the Ukrainian army itself,” French defence minister Sebastian Lecornu told reporters, ruling out any postwar “demilitarisation” of Ukraine.

“The word ‘demilitarisation’ is emerging, but it is not the case. On the contrary, the real guarantee of long-term security will be the capabilities that we will be able to give to the Ukrainian army,” he added.

Lecornu said that “at this stage, about fifteen countries have shown an interest in continuing this process,” referring to proposed options for a “security architecture” with a view to a lasting ceasefire” in Ukraine.

He warned against seeing Ukraine’s post-war security solely in terms of European troops who could be deployed there, repeatedly insisting that this was not an issue to be decided on now.

Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz also welcomed a “real unity of the continent”, referring to the threat from Russia.

According to the website of the Polish Ministry of Defence, the EU’s main aim should be “to keep Russia as far away from here as possible. As far away from our countries as possible,” which means “supporting Ukraine when it is fighting.”

But the five also stressed the importance of the “strategic trans-atlantic partnership,” but all while “building a strong Europe.”

‘US engagement’

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said that, despite the rapid pace of change, the current situation could help Europe.

“I am convinced that if we act now, if we choose security in Europe over the nitty-gritty of national interest, we will emerge from this situation strengthened,” he said.

UK Defence Secretary John Healey said Britain and its allies knew that “we must step up” and re-arm.

“We are looking to build a coalition,” he said. “We are accelerating this work.”

He added, “In the coming weeks you will see European allies coming closer together.”

He also spoke of “decisive days in the push for peace in Ukraine”, but added that after Tuesday’s agreement between Ukraine and the US it was up to Russia to show it was serious.

“I say to President (Vladimir) Putin ‘it is over to you now’. You said you wanted talks. Prove it. Accept the ceasefire, start negotiations, and end the war”

“Make no mistake: the pressure is now on Putin,” he said.

The defence ministers spoke after Ukraine on Tuesday gave the nod to a US-backed plan for a 30-day ceasefire, at talks in Saudi Arabia.

They also released a joint statement saying they had decided to “remain committed to NATO as the cornerstone of collective defence.”

“US engagement is essential in that regard,” the joint statement said.

Extra spending

Meanwhile, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said Thursday that failing to quickly approve extra spending to bolster the country’s military would be irresponsible given the turbulent international context.

Speaking at the beginning of a key parliamentary debate to discuss the plans, which need a two-thirds majority to pass, Merz said “any further delay” in lifting defence spending “would be irresponsible”.

“We must now take action to significantly increase our defence capabilities, and we must do so quickly,” he said.

Pointing to the United States’ deteriorating ties with Ukraine and its European allies, Merz said “we could be standing before a decision with deep consequences for our country’s history”.

Merz and his centre-right CDU/CSU alliance are currently in talks with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) on a possible coalition government after last month’s general election.

Last week the two parties jointly presented plans for big spending packages, including exempting defence spending from Germany’s constitutionally enshrined debt brake when it exceeds one percent of GDP, as well as on boosting infrastructure.

A vote on the plans is scheduled for Tuesday and Merz wants them to be approved quickly before the new parliament is convened.

Windfall for European arms makers as Brussels ramps up defence spending

Earlier on, on 4 March the EU Commission announced the “Rearm Europe” plan which includes that member states can boost defence spending even if it means breaking the bloc’s budget deficit rule of 3 percent of GDP. The plan was approved by a EU summit two days later. 

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggested the EU could raise “close to” €650 billion over four years, which would be added to a €150 billion loan to member states for defence investment, totalling €800 billion.

Russia’s Tass news agency, quoted Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharovathe as saying that the “military buildup plan for Europe is designed to incite war.”

“Armament of countries that are clearly losing their ability to operate effectively is progressing rapidly and excessively. Historically, this has always been referred to as provoking war,” she said.

(With newswires)

Von der Leyen was in Cape Town on Thursday alongside other European leaders to take part in the eighth EU-South Africa summit.

The European Commission president said the Global Gateway investment package was intended to support a just energy transition, vaccine manufacturing and digital and physical connectivity.

The summit aims to enhance bilateral cooperation, including in the economy, trade and investment relations and security and defence. South Africa is the EU’s largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa, with €49 billion worth of trade in goods in 2023.

The bloc has also recently become South Africa’s top source of foreign direct investment – 53.7 percent of the total in 2022.

South Africa faces HIV crisis as Trump’s aid freeze halts treatment and research

Stronger ties

For Ivor Ichikowitz, founder and chairman of the philanthropic Ichikowitz Family Foundation in Johannesburg, which focuses on growth and development on the African continent, the rise of European investment in South Africa is good news.

“I think that the EU summit in South Africa this year is probably more important and more relevant than anybody ever expected it to be,” he told RFI. “There has never been a time when South Africa needs the European Union more than right now.”

Referring to the recent freeze of foreign aid by the United States under President Donald Trump, he added: “The breakdown in the relationship between South Africa and the United States poses a massive threat to the South African economy.”

Ichikowitz believes a strong trading relationship with the EU is now crucial for South Africa.

EU leaders to boost ties with South Africa at summit focusing on Ukraine

“This is a partnership based on shared values and common interests. A partnership that seeks to create prosperity for our citizens and promote peace, safety and stability,” South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa said at the summit.

According to him, the new investment package will “consolidate cooperation in areas such as science and technology, education and skills development, climate action, peace and security, health and critical minerals”.

A neutral voice

While South Africa is welcoming stronger ties with the EU in the wake of Trump’s USAID cuts, the EU in turn is seeking more global support for its engagement in Ukraine against Russia, especially among non-aligned countries.

Ichikowitz believes a stronger bond with the EU will push Ramaphosa to assert South Africa’s neutral stance.

“It means that South Africa has to now start walking the talk of neutrality. Historically, South Africa has definitely been identified as being an ally of Russia and against the West, when in reality, the stance of the government is that of neutrality.”

South Africa ‘will not be bullied,’ Ramaphosa says after Trump attack

“Women artists have long been marginalised in art history courses and by museums and galleries,” Manon Lecaplainn, director of the Sainte-Croix Museum, told RFI. “For decades, art history has been written without women. Why should our exclusively female exhibition be shocking?”

“Our aim is not to exclude men from art history,” she explains. “The goal is to make people think.”

The Sainte-Croix Museum has been known in France for its proactive policy of promoting women artists since the 1980s.

In this new exhibition, Lecaplain and her co-curator Camille Belvèze are showcasing nearly 300 works from the 18th century to the present day, divided into three sections: the collection of Eugénie Dubreuil, the hierarchy of genres in art history, and the social role of the museum.

Spotlight on Africa: celebrating female empowerment for Women’s History Month

This exhibition is the first step in a five-year project to promote Dubreuil’s collection – entitled La Musée – and relies on a financial grant of €150,000.

“Why not an initiative like this on a larger scale in France, Europe, the world?” asks Dubreuil.

► La Musée runs until 18 May, 2025 at the Sainte-Croix Museum in Poitiers.

France co-founded the United Nations International Labour Organisation in 1919, championing “equal pay for equal work”, and in 1972, the agency wrote the principle of pay equality into its labour code.

In 1983, France’s Roudy law mandated equal opportunities in the workplace, requiring companies to publish annual reports comparing the situation of its male and female employees and introducing a tool to help human resources managers identify and measure pay differences.

In 2018, the country launched an index to monitor the performance of large companies in the field of gender equality.

But this battery of legal measures has still not enabled France to close its gender pay gap.

Data published this week by the French National Statistics Institute (Insee) showed that in 2023 women’s average annual salary was €21,340 net compared to €27,430 for men – a difference of more than 22 percent.

While there has been progress, the pace is slow, with the gap narrowing at a rate of 1 percent per year over the last five years.

The primary reasons behind the gender pay gap are hours worked and type of jobs held. Women work on average 9 percent less than men and they’re also more likely to work part-time. But even when working hours are identical, their average salary is 14.2 percent lower than men’s, Insee found.

What’s more, working part-time is not necessarily a life choice says Anne Eydoux, an economist specialising in employment and gender issues.

“It’s a choice made under constraint, and some of the constraints refer to the gender divide of family roles where women take [more] parental responsibility,” she tells RFI. “But it’s also the result of occupational segregation.” Women are over-represented in for example supermarket and cleaning jobs, where split shifts are common.

Sexism and workplace inequality is rife in most areas of French life, research shows

Gendered occupations

Women are also far more likely to work in low-paying sectors such as health, care and education.

According to Insee, more than 95 percent of secretaries are women, with an average full-time net salary of €2,044 per month.

Meanwhile, only a quarter of engineers and IT executives – professions in which average monthly net salaries are close to €4,000 – are women.

“Women are over-represented in the care sector, where their skills are under-recognised,” Eydoux said. “And this is a fact for many female-dominated occupations, as the Covid crisis showed.”

Women also have less access to the highest-paying jobs. In 2023, they accounted for 42 percent of full-time equivalent positions in the private sector, and yet just 24 percent of the top 1 percent of high-paying jobs. The glass ceiling is still there, as Eydoux noted.

France works towards gender equality in top jobs while UK women are still struggling

Cultural attitudes

Working less and in lower-paid sectors does not, however, fully explain the 22 percent wage gap. Women doing the same job as men in the same company are still paid 3.8 percent less.

There are historical and cultural reasons for this according to Marie Donzel, an expert in social innovation and author of  “Justified inequalities: how to pay women less with a clear conscience”.

Until 1945, France had a “female wage”. Based on the assumption that a woman’s pay was intended merely to supplement her husband’s income, “women could be paid 10 to 15 percent less just because of their gender,” Donzel told RFI. 

This has helped foster gendered attitudes towards salaries. “Women tend to see [their pay] in terms of how much they need to live, and men see it in terms of ‘how much my job is worth’,” she said.

Donzel also points to a cultural prevailing negative image of women who take an interest in money. “We have a gendered socialisation in France that teaches us to be modest. When we talk about money, there’s still the spectre of venality.”

Gender pay gap means French women are ‘working for free’ until end of year

‘I thought negotiating was vulgar’

Women themselves are not always aware that they’re being discriminated against. It took Nathalie, a regional director for a multinational company, 15 years to find out.

“While chatting with my male counterparts, I realised that I was earning about €1,000 less per month than they were,” she told Franceinfo. “I’d lost €150,000 over 15 years.”

After comparing pay slips with colleagues, she realised that “every time, the women had significantly more experience in the role, more qualifications, we checked all the boxes. And yet, we were paid less. And the higher you climb in the hierarchy, the bigger the gap becomes”.

Nathalie took her case to court and won, securing a raise for herself and her colleagues. She questions whether women “negotiate their salaries enough”.

The question of negotiating pay “is as taboo as sex,” says lawyer Insaff El Hassini.

She set up a training and coaching company called Ma Juste Valeur – meaning “My True Worth” – to help women overcome that barrier and negotiate their pay, after facing gender discrimination in the workplace herself.

“I found out my male colleague earned €5,000 a year more than me,” she told RFI.  “When I voiced my concerns I was told, ‘Well you’re already well paid, you should have negotiated your starting salary when you joined’. No one had told me you had to negotiate. I thought it was vulgar.”

Gender gap at work far wider than expected, women’s pay remains static, UN says

Closing the gap

This year France will implement the EU’s 2023 Pay Transparency Directive, obliging companies to provide employees with pay scales for equivalent posts. Both Eydoux and Donzel welcome this transparency measure.

Eydoux also points to economic measures such as increasing both the minimum wage and income tax on very high wages, which together would narrow the pay gap. But the French government, which is trying to reduce the country’s huge deficit and keep high-earners and businesses on board, is not currently in favour of either.

Donzel insists that salaries in the female-dominated education and care sectors must be raised, given the contribution they make to society. “Whether it’s taking care of children, the elderly or in caring professions, this is obviously what’s most valuable, yet the economy has reversed the value system and that’s what we pay the least for.”

Eydoux would also like to see France’s gender quota policy, which has proven “very efficient” in breaking the glass ceiling by imposing gender-balance on executive boards, extended to other sectors.

Growing ‘masculinist’ culture in France slows down fight against sexism

For the moment, however, she says there aren’t many signs of improvement: “I don’t see much political will to focus on the gender pay gap and reduce it.”

Resistance to gender equality is nothing new, she added, and while younger women in particular are “more conscious of the gender pay gap and more willing to improve the situation”, they are now facing new forms of resistance.  

“More and more young men are defending masculinist positions and ideologies,” she said, with some claiming the 22 percent gender pay gap is “fake news”.

The massacre at Thiaroye took place on 1 December, 1944, when French colonial troops opened fire on West African soldiers who had just returned from Europe, where they had been fighting for France. 

The tirailleurs sénégalais (Senegalese riflemen), as they were known, had been promised the same pay and pensions as their French counterparts. 

When they assembled peacefully to demand their rightful compensation, they were met with gunfire. The exact death toll remains disputed: official French accounts initially claimed only 35 casualties, while other estimates suggest more than 300 were killed. 

Before turning his lens on Thiaroye, Monteil had examined policing methods in France. He observed parallels between contemporary law enforcement tactics and the operations once carried out in Africa. 

“During my research, I made the connection between modern law enforcement and its colonial heritage,” he told RFI. 

Documenting Thiaroye through images became the natural next step for the photographer, in tribute to the Senegalese soldiers whose story has been largely forgotten. 

France honours WWII colonial troops shot dead by French army in Senegal

Recreating the past

The result is the book Fecci Worma, which means “High Treason” in the Wolof language.  

Over three years, Monteil travelled between France and Senegal, retracing the events. He visited Morlaix, on the Brittany coast, where the discharged Senegalese soldiers had boarded a ship home, and Thiaroye, where they were killed. 

Monteil timed his photographs to recreate the past – shooting in the early morning in Morlaix to mirror the soft light when the soldiers departed. 

He also shot portraits of descendants of the soldiers, as well as the historians and artists who have studied the massacre, and the caretaker of Thiaroye’s military cemetery. 

Alongside his photographs, Monteil has used infographics and maps to bring complex historical data to life. Using French military archives, he also reconstructed the layout of the Thiaroye transit camp, which served as a temporary home to demobilised soldiers following their service.  

By overlaying contemporary aerial images on historical maps, he revealed a geography that had been buried by time.  

“A black circle surrounded the site of the massacre, on military reports from that time,” he explained. His maps highlight where the soldiers’ barracks stood and where the French army entered the camp. 

Senegal mourns Thiaroye war heroes slain by French troops 80 years ago

These visual reconstructions could prove useful for archaeologists. In February, the Senegalese government announced plans for excavations, in order to determine the true number of soldiers killed.  

A hidden history

In a single, striking image, one of Monteil’s infographics lays bare the conflicting figures reported over the past 60 years. 

His research draws on diverse sources: French public archives, newspaper clippings, the work of Senegalese filmmaker Mansour Kébé from the 1980s, as well as testimonies from military personnel, historians and the children of the soldiers. 

French historian Armelle Mabon, a specialist in the Thiaroye massacre, provided access to her own archives, which expose contradictions and omissions in the French state’s version of events.

“She is a historian, a detective, a researcher. She brings a different sensitivity and vision of things – a book was missing,” Monteil says of Mabon. 

For both the photographer and the historian, uncovering the truth about Thiaroye remains an unfinished mission – and a crucial one because the official record still contains significant gaps, 80 years on.

“There are still obstructions from the French state and we clearly show them in this book,” Monteil says.  

Among the grey areas is the list of repatriated soldiers, the exact mapping of where the soldiers are buried and archives that appear deliberately truncated. 

Monteil notes with frustration that a French parliamentary commission, established to investigate the massacre, ultimately produced no findings. 

For his book project, he bypassed traditional publishing houses in favour of crowdfunding, a choice he says ensured complete editorial independence. “The Thiaroye massacre would not have interested many publishers.”

This story has been adapted from the original version in French by Juliette Dubois

Shea butter is widely used in the cosmetics industry, as well as by chocolatiers as a substitute for cocoa butter.

Diongoma was founded by Mariama Sylla in 2007. Located in Salemata, in the southeast of the country, its product has been certified “organic” by the Ecocert organisation since 2016.

This certification was hard-won, as according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the marketing of organic products in Senegal faces a number of constraints, including the high cost of certification processes.

From harvest to production, Sylla currently works with 3,000 women. She has enabled more favourable valuation of shea, which is a source of income for up to a third of households in Senegal.

RFI went to the Paris Agricultural Show to meet Diongoma to find out more.

Sylviane Boyer founded Pot en Ciel Kreol in 2023, in Cambaie in the north of Réunion, a French department in the Indian Ocean. She had taken over her family farm, which grew numerous vegetables native to the island.

“On Réunion Island, we have exotic vegetables, which have lots of antioxidants. We’re protected here on this little volcanic island, in terms of all the produce we have,” Boyer told RFI. “There are vegetables that can’t be found in mainland France… papaya, chayote, watercress that grow in our mountains. And chillies.”

Over the years, Boyer began to notice a rise in cases of diabetes, Crohn’s disease and high cholesterol. It was at this point that she became interested in micronutrition – the practice of optimising the diet to include vitamins and minerals the body needs – and discovered lacto-fermentation.

“We have lots of health problems because we eat too much fat and sugar. This led me to study lacto-fermentation a bit and I found that, scientifically speaking, a lot has been proven about it, which brought me back to it.”

Why do France’s overseas territories have a diabetes problem?

This technique is very common in several Africa countries, where access to electricity can be limited, making food preservation a challenge.

“In Africa, babies’ first meals are made using lacto-fermentation. It’s a natural process to follow,” says Boyer.

This ancient food preservation technique involves immersing food in salted water to encourage the growth of lactic acid bacteria.

“We use large vats where we put local fruits and vegetables from Réunion, along with water and natural, unrefined salt from Saint Leu. This process helps us pre-digest the food and release its full bioavailability,” explains Mégane Mardemoutou, sales manager at Pot en Ciel Kreol.

“This process develops probiotics and prebiotics, multiplies vitamin C, vitamin K – which is very important for the heart – and various B vitamins like B2 and B6.”

One local vegetable the company works with is bitter melon. “It’s a fruit that grows on vines, somewhat like cucumbers. It’s an old local vegetable with a thousand benefits because it aids detoxification, improves heart circulation and provides all the essential vitamins we need,” says Mardemoutou.

Over half of all adults will be overweight or obese by 2050, study shows

The company is now working with hospitals, the Regional Health Agency and local organisations to spread awareness of the health benefits of lacto-fermentation.

The EU measures will cover goods from the United States worth some €26 billion, and apart from steel and aluminum products, will include textiles, home appliances and agricultural goods. Motorcycles, bourbon, peanut butter and jeans will also be hit.

The European Commission, which manages trade- and commercial coflicts for the bloc, said in a statement on Wednesday that the EU steps are a ‘carefully calibrated’ response to Washington’s tariffs and that they will take place in two stages.

On 1 April, the Commission will re-instate tariffs that were put in place during the first Trump administration between 2018 and 2020. These countermeasures target “a range of US products” that respond to “economic harm done on €8 billion of EU steel and aluminium exports.”

In response to new US tariffs affecting more than €18 billion of EU exports, the Commission will then put forward a new package countermeasures on US exports, to come into force “by mid-April.” 

‘Open to negotiation’

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU “will always remain open to negotiation.”

“We firmly believe that in a world fraught with geopolitical and economic uncertainties, it is not in our common interest to burden our economies with tariffs,” von der Leyen said.

Meanwhile, the UK said it would not impose retaliatory measures of its own on the United States, but London called Washington’s decision to impose 25 percent tariffs on global steel and aluminum imports “disappointing.”

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that tariffs on Australian steel and aluminum were “unjustified,” but that his government would not retaliate with its own tariffs.

And Japan said it was “regrettable“ that the country had not been granted an exemption from the US tariffs.

Japan government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi warned that “widespread measures to limit trade risk having a significant impact on the Japan-US economic relationship as well as the world economy and multilateral trade system.“ 

(With newswires)

Angola announced on Tuesday that it would attempt to broker the direct talks.

The Southern African country has been trying to mediate a lasting ceasefire and de-escalate tensions between Congo and neighbouring Rwanda, which has been accused of backing the Tutsi-led rebel group, M23. Rwanda denies those allegations.

Angola pushes for direct talks between Kinshasa and M23 in DRC crisis

Congo’s government has until now repeatedly refused to hold direct talks with M23, but on Tuesday it said that it had taken note of the Angolan initiative.

On Wednesday, the spokesperson for Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi, Tina Salama, told media that the government had received an invitation from Angola, but she did not confirm its participation.

Meanwhile, the M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa boasted in a post on X about forcing Tshisekedi to the negotiating table, calling it “the only civilised option to resolve the current crisis” that has intensified dramatically since January.

More discussions

The situation in eastern DRC is also on the agenda of an extraordinary summit of heads of state of the Southern African region (SADC) this Thursday.

The meeting is held via videoconference and chaired by Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, currently head of SADC.

The objective is to clarify the fate of the regional armed forces deployed in the eastern part of the country.

The rebels have seized the two provincial capitals in eastern Congo, Goma and Bukavu since January in an escalation of a long-running conflict. They’re also advancing in smaller villages in the area.

Regional implications

The conflict is rooted in the spillover into Congo of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide but also spiralled with the struggle for control of Congo’s vast mineral resources.

Eastern Congo is indeed home to vast reserves of strategic minerals such as coltan, cobalt, copper and lithium, resources that are central to the world’s race to develop new technology and green energy.

Listen to our podcast: In the DRC, can conflict mineral mining be stopped?

Congo’s government has said at least 7,000 people have died in the fighting since January.

At least 600,000 people have been displaced by the fighting since November, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office (Ocha).

Human Rights Watch (HRW) is also concerned about the shrinking civic space in areas controlled by the M23. In a report released on Wednesday, the human rights NGO states that Rwandan-backed rebels have repeatedly pressured and arrested civil society activists and journalists, going so far as to assassinate two of them.

This method, already used in areas occupied by the M23, is now becoming widespread in the provinces of North and South Kivu, sometimes with the help of Rwanda, according to HRW and RFI’s correspondents.

Congo’s neighbours, including Burundi, Uganda and South Africa have troops in eastern DRC.

Ugandan army deploys to town in northeast DR Congo amid fears of wider conflict

The situation is raising fears of an all-out regional war reminiscent of the Congo wars of the 1990s and early 2000s which killed millions.

 (with Reuters)

“In view of the ongoing internal clashes in Tigray, particularly in Adigrat and Mekele, travel throughout the Tigray region is now formally inadvisable,” said the ministry on its website.

“French nationals passing through are asked to leave Tigray as soon as possible,” the advice added.

Between November 2020 and November 2022, the region was a conflict zone between federal forces, supported by local militias and the Eritrean army as well as Tigrayan rebels.

The fighting left at least 600,000 people dead in Tigray, according to the African Union before a peace agreement was signed in Pretoria in South Africa. In the deal, the two parties agreed that an interim administration would be established to rule Tigray until elections are held.

However, due to delays in implementing the agreement, there have been sharp divisions within the TPLF. Getachew Reda, who was placed in charge of an interim administration by Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Ahmed Abiy, is in a battle for control with Debretsion Gebremichael.

On Tuesday, Getachew ordered the suspension of three generals of the Tigray Defence Forces, accusing the rival faction of trying to take over the whole of Tigray in an interview with Tigrai Mass Media Agency.

Fear

There is growing fear that Ethiopia’s neighbour and historic rival, Eritrea, may take advantage of the situation to launch an invasion.

“We have been close to a new conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia for the past two years,” Kjetil Tronvoll, Oslo University professor specialising in the region, told the French news agency AFP.

“We just do not know what will be the triggering factor.”

He said that the dissatisfactiIon of the Eritrean president Isaias Afwerki’s with the 2022 peace agreement, Abiy’s ambitions for a port on the Red Sea, and geopolitical interest from the Middle East have all played into the deteriorating tensions.

“That has left the two countries inching closer to a new war,” he added. “The situation in Tigray can be the triggering factor.”

Abiy was lauded, including winning the Nobel Peace Prize, for finally reaching a peace agreement with Eritrea when he came to power in 2018.

It briefly allowed borders to reopen to the isolated country, which Afeworki has ruled virtually unchallenged since 1993.

However, relations have strained since the end of the Tigray war in 2022. “A war between Ethiopia and Eritrea could break out at any moment,” said General Tsadkan Gebretensae, senior strategist for the Tigray forces in Getachew’s administration, in remarks published earlier this week.

With the Jewish holidays of Purim and Passover just around the corner, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau is taking proactive steps to ensure safety, calling on police prefects and security officials to be “extremely vigilant”.

The move underscores the government’s strong commitment to protecting Jewish communities during these important celebrations.

France has long made security a priority during Jewish festivities, reinforcing measures to prevent any potential threats.

Last year, then-Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin took similar steps, also emphasising the need for heightened security around synagogues and community spaces during Purim.

Given ongoing global tensions, these precautions remain as crucial as ever.

France ups security at synagogues, Jewish schools after Iran’s attack on Israel

Spike in antisemitic acts 

Passover, another key holiday, also saw heightened security last year, with police and military forces stationed at synagogues and Jewish schools.

Authorities noted a “very high level of terrorist threat” and a rise in antisemitic incidents, making extra security essential.

Purim, known for its lively spirit, features colourful costumes, festive readings, and acts of charity.

Passover, on the other hand, brings families together to commemorate freedom with the traditional Seder meal.

The celebrations bring a sense of unity and tradition – but also require extra vigilance to ensure that everyone can celebrate safely.

Macron promises France will be ‘uncompromising’ when it comes to anti-Semitism

Potential threats

The French government’s “no nonsense” approach to security during these holidays has been a reassuring sign for Jewish communities, as it not only deters potential threats but also encourages communities that they can celebrate freely and without fear.

Bruno Retailleau has asked those in charge to pay attention to the upcoming services and gatherings, which traditionally attract large crowds in certain places at certain times.

He has also underlined the need for increased vigilance, particularly around places of worship.

Retailleau had already issued such directives in the past, particularly at the start of Ramadan earlier this month, on All Saints’ Day and at New Year festivities.

(With newswires)

Belgian police launched a series of sweeping operations on Thursday, raiding multiple locations across the country as part of an investigation into suspected corruption disguised as commercial lobbying.

According to Belgium’s federal prosecutor’s office, several individuals have been taken in for questioning over their “alleged involvement in active corruption within the European Parliament, as well as forgery and the use of forgeries”.

The large-scale operation involved around 100 police officers and saw some 21 searches – conducted in Belgium and Portugal – underscoring the serious nature of the probe.

Huawei under scrutiny

Belgian newspaper Le Soir and investigative platform Follow the Money report that the investigation is linked to Chinese tech giant Huawei and its lobbying efforts in Brussels since 2021.

The raids mark another major corruption investigation in the corridors of the  European Union, following the high-profile “Qatargate” scandal more than two years ago, in which several European lawmakers were accused of accepting bribes to advance the interests of Qatar and Morocco – allegations both nations have firmly denied.

While the Belgian authorities have not disclosed the identities of those involved, they described the alleged corruption as the work of a “criminal organisation” operating discreetly since 2021.

The suspected bribes reportedly took various forms, including financial incentives for political positions, lavish gifts, paid travel expenses, and exclusive invitations to football matches – all aimed at swaying political decisions to benefit private commercial interests.

Prosecutors indicated that these illicit payments were disguised as conference expenses and funnelled through intermediaries.

Qatar bribery scandal ‘threatens credibility’ of European parliament

Money laundering

They are also examining whether money laundering played a role in the scheme.

At the centre of the allegations is a former parliamentary assistant who was employed at the time as Huawei’s EU public affairs director, Belgian media has reported.

Police have detained “several lobbyists,” who are expected to appear before a judge for further questioning.

A police source confirmed to French news agency AFP that no current EU lawmakers were among those questioned on Thursday morning.

Far-right Le Pen to stand trial on EU embezzlement, fraud charges

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the European Parliament stated that it “takes note of the information” and remains committed to full cooperation with judicial authorities.

This latest scandal comes as European authorities continue investigating financial misconduct within political circles.

In France, far-right leader Marine Le Pen remains under scrutiny over allegations of misusing EU funds, with prosecutors probing claims that she and her National Rally party improperly allocated parliamentary allowances for personal and political expenses.

(With newswires)

Passed with 288 votes in favour and 54 against, the resolution called on the EU, Nato and other allied countries to continue and increase their political, economic and military support for Ukraine.

The backing for President Volodymyr Zelenksy’s administration came hours after his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin urged his armed forces to continue their sweep through the border region of Kursk.

In his first visit to the region since Ukraine launched its counter-offensive in August, Putin, dressed in army camouflage, hailed recent gains.

“I am counting on the fact that all the combat tasks facing our units will be fulfilled, and the territory of the Kursk region will soon be completely liberated from the enemy,” he said in televised remarks.

Russia’s forces have retaken 24 settlements in the border region over the last five days, chief of the general staff Valery Gerasimov told Putin.

Voyage

Minutes after footage of Putin’s remarks aired on Russian state TV, Ukraine’s army commander suggested his troops were pulling back to minimise losses.

“In the most difficult situation, my priority has been and remains saving the lives of Ukrainian soldiers. To this end, the units of the defence forces, if necessary, manoeuvre to more favourable positions,” commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said in a Facebook post.

Despite government objections, the resolution in the Assemblée nationale also wanted Russian assets to be seized in order to finance the military support for Ukraine.

“The total seizure of the main part of these assets raises legal questions and the question of the economic precedent that this could represent for foreign investors,” Benjamin Haddad, the Minister for Europe, told MPs.

MPs also clashed over EU countries continuing to import Russian gas and placing European troops on Ukrainian soil in the event of a peace agreement.

“We encourage the French government and its European partners to study the possibility of deploying European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine,” the resolution said.

There are some explanations for France’s 22 percent gender pay gap – women work fewer hours on average and in lower-paid jobs. But even doing the same job and putting in the same hours, women still earn 4 percent less than men, and a barrage of legal measures hasn’t managed to change that. We look at what’s going on with economist Anne Eydoux and lawyer Insaff El Hassani – founder of a company helping women negotiate salaries. El Hassani highlights negative images around wealthy women and how France’s “female wage”, dropped in 1946, still impacts the way some employers view women’s salaries. (Listen @0′)

France has downsized its ambitions to increase the amount of organic agriculture after a drop in consumer demand for organic food . After years of growth, especially during the Covid pandemic, inflation and a distrust in labelling have turned consumers away from buying organic produce, even as new farmers are drawn to the prospect of working in a different way. At the recent annual agricultural fair in Paris, farmers and others working in the organic sector talk about how they are adapting to the new economic reality, and the need to raise awareness of the value of organic food, beyond the price tag. (Listen @17′)

France is marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of composer Maurice Ravel, whose most famous piece, Boléro, is considered an avant-garde musical expression of  the machine age. (Listen @9’50”)

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompeani. 

Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, Apple podcasts (link here), Spotify (link here) or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).

After drawing the first leg in Germany 1-1, Lille took the lead in the fifth minute at the Stade Pierre Mauroy through Jonathan David.

But 10 minutes after the pause, Emre Can levelled proceedings from the penalty spot and Maximilian Beier scored Dortmund’s second mid way through the second-half.

“The feeling is one of disappointment at being eliminated,” said Lille boss Bruno Genesio. “The players must be congratulated on a run that we would have liked to continue.

“We played well in the first-half, pressing quite hard. Then, inexplicably enough, we had 20 minutes in the second-half when we stopped playing.”

Following their 3-2 aggregate victory, Dortmund, who lost in last year’s final, will take on Barcelona in the quarter-finals.

PSG, who saw off Liverpool on Tuesday night at Anfield following a penalty shoot-out, will take on another English Premier League club in the shape of Aston Villa who are coached by the former PSG boss Unai Emery. 

Former PSG striker Marco Asensio bagged a brace in the 3-0 rout of Club Brugge to give Villa a 6-1 aggregate victory.

PSG will host Villa at the Parc des Princes on 9 April and the second leg will take place in Birmingham on 15 April.

In the other quarter-finals, the defending champions Real Madrid will face Arsenal and Bayern Munich will take on Inter Milan.

Ukrainian officials endorsed an American proposal for a 30-day ceasefire and agreed to immediate negotiations with Russia at pivotal talks in Jeddah on Tuesday, opening the possibility to ending three years of war.

Macron posted on X that “the ball is now clearly in Russia’s court”. He hailed the “progress” made in the Jeddah talks but insisted that Kyiv needs “robust” security guarantees in any ceasefire.

“Today we made an offer that the Ukrainians have accepted, which is to enter into a ceasefire and into immediate negotiations,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters after around nine hours of talks.

“We’ll take this offer now to the Russians and we hope they’ll say yes to peace. The ball is now in their court.

“If they say no then we’ll, unfortunately, know what the impediment is to peace here,” Rubio said of Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of its smaller neighbour in February 2022.

End the ‘meat-grinder of people’

Mike Waltz, Trump’s national security advisor, who said he would speak in the coming days with his Russian counterpart, credited the Ukrainians with agreeing on the need to “end the killing, to end the tragic meat-grinder of people and national treasure”.

Rubio said the United States would immediately resume military assistance and intelligence sharing it had cut off to pressure its wartime partner.

Top Zelensky aide Andriy Yermak said that Ukraine had made clear that its desire is peace.

“Russia needs to say, very clearly, they want peace or not, they want to end this war, which they started, or no,” Yermak told reporters.

From Ukraine, Zelensky thanked Trump for the “positive” ceasefire proposal and said the United States must now work to persuade Russia.

 “The American side understands our arguments, perceives our proposals, and I want to thank President Trump for the constructive conversation between our teams,” Zelensky said in his evening address.

In a joint statement, Ukraine and the United States said they would conclude “as soon as possible” a deal securing US access to Ukraine’s mineral wealth, which Trump demanded as compensation for billions of dollars in US weapons under his predecessor Joe Biden.

European allies rally behind Ukraine after White House clash

European leaders welcomed the outcome of the talks in Jeddah.

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the deal a “remarkable breakthrough” while Italy’s Giorgia Meloni said now the ceasefire “decision is up to Russia”.

In Poland, a top supporter of Ukraine and where historical memories of Russia run deep, Prime Minister Donald Tusk praised the “important step towards peace” by the United States and Ukraine.

Trump’s abrupt shift on Ukraine following Biden’s strong support has rattled European allies, with France and Germany increasingly speaking of developing common European defence if the United States no longer offers its security guarantees through NATO.

Macron, who has mulled European forces in Ukraine as part of any future deal, hosted a separate closed-door meeting in Paris on Tuesday.

European defence meetings

Representatives from 34 countries were present – most of them from Europe and NATO, but also from Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

There was no representative from the United States, which is the leading member of NATO.

According to the president’s office, the military chiefs of staff agreed that the security guarantees “should not be separated from NATO and its capabilities”.

Macron hosts European military chiefs to discuss Ukraine security guarantees

“This is the moment when Europe must throw its full weight behind Ukraine, and itself,” Macron told the meeting, the president’s office said.

“In view of the acceleration of peace negotiations,” it was necessary to start planning to “define credible security guarantees” to make a lasting peace in Ukraine a reality”.

Ahead of the meeting, French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu said: “We will reject any form of demilitarisation of Ukraine.”

Defence ministers from Europe’s five main military powers – France, Britain, Germany, Italy and Poland – are to meet in the French capital on Wednesday. EU and NATO representatives and the Ukrainian defence minister will also take part.

(with AFP)

The proposal, initiated by Marie Pochon, a Green Party MP for Drôme, was adopted unanimously by French politicians on Tuesday.

The process of public grievance registers started informally six years ago during the Yellow Vests protest movement (Gilets jaunes).

In the fall of 2018, men and women wearing yellow safety vests gathered on the roundabouts across France, first to denounce a fuel tax, then more broadly over the difficulties of making ends meet and the actions of political leaders.

They began to note down their complaints in mostly handwritten logs under the name “cahier de doléances” in reference to complaints compiled during the French revolution.

Inspired by the idea, French President Emmanuel Macron launched a broad citizen consultation – known as the Great National Debate – between 15 January and 15 March 15, 2019.

5 ways Yellow Vests protests shook up Paris and France

The unprecedented democratic process resulted in the collection of over “19,000 citizens’ notebooks,” a “national treasure,” according to Pochon.

The documents, contain “anger, hopes, life stories, concerns and proposals from our fellow citizens” she said.

Redistribution of wealth, tax justice

At the time, the government paid €2.5 million to private companies to photocopy and scan the thousands of registers which were then analysed based on keywords.

Many of the complaints focused on purchasing power, social inequalities, democracy and even taxation.

Romain Benoit-Lévy, a doctoral student in history at Rennes 2 University told Franceinfo that the running of the country was also a concern.

“Tax justice, wealth redistribution, and the resources allocated to public services are the most common topics,” he says of the notebooks he saw from the Somme region, which he studied with a group of researchers.

‘Macron forced me to become more political’: a tale of two Yellow Vests

Researcher Magali Della Sudda, looking at documents in the Bordeaux area that thousands reiterated the theme of poverty and concerns over social security. Others wrote they were angry “votes blancs” or empty ballots, were not counted in elections.

However, the files are languishing in archive centres or municipal offices across France, and while the public was technically allowed to consult some of them at the centres, only a handful of people have done so.

Tuesday’s resolution calls on the government to “make these grievances public on an online platform open to all.”

MPs want the state to finalise and finance “the digitization of each book of grievances” and also “their anonymization.”

Under existing law, these archives cannot be made public until fifty years after their deposit in order to protect the contributors’ privacy.

New technology needed

The Minister for Relations with Parliament, Patrick Mignola, told MPs that the government was committed to seeking “new technical solutions” and an exemption would be made to facilitate access for researchers.

He notably mentioned “tests” to treat already digitised content using artificial intelligence, and promised to involve a committee made up of parliamentarians, local elected officials and the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (CESE) in its management.

Prime Minister François Bayrou called for the publication of the document in his address to MPs in January as his precdecessor Michel Barnier.

While the resolution gained cross-party support, there were a number of reactions from the opposition.

Far-right National Rally MP Edwige Diaz said the resolution was  “ironically co-signed by all those responsible for the Yellow Vest crisis” and that the measures since 2018 show continue to show disdain for those who bear the brunt. 

Transparency report warns of rising corruption, France slips in rankings

For far-right France Unbowed party (LFI) MP Arnaud Le Gall, said the publication of the notebooks would be “a step in the fight” to rehabilitate “the dignity” of the yellow vests leaders “who have been widely defamed and whose main slogans have been obscured.”

Pochon said she hoped the government would “engage in constructive and transparent work” and recommended that MPs “remain vigilant and mobilised until this resolution is fully implemented.”

The last time such a step was taken was in 1903, the year when “Jean Jaurès initiated a research and publication of the grievances of the French Revolution, and presented it to the National Assembly,” according to Pochon.

“Today, we will have the opportunity to do so in less than a century.”

The Directorate General of Health (DGS) issued a message to professionals dated 7 March, stating that given the extreme contagiousness of the disease, they could expect to see more cases spread across the country “in the coming weeks”.

The agency insisted on a “high vaccination coverage among the population of all ages, including healthcare professionals and those working with children, to limit viral circulation and protect the most vulnerable”.

A highly contagious disease, measles spreads through respiratory droplets and lingering in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves an area.

It causes fever, respiratory symptoms, and a rash. It can also lead to serious complications, including pneumonia, brain inflammation, and death.

Actively circulating in France

“It is one of the most contagious viruses on the planet,” François Dubos, head of the pediatric emergency department at Lille University Hospital, explained to France 2 television.

“An infected person can infect 15 to 20 people around them who are not immune.”

The virus is actively circulating in mainland France, with reports issued by seven regional health agencies (ARS) for around 100 cases.

France has had measles outrbreaks before, but the number of cases had declined significantly during the Covid-19 lockdown, with only 16 and 15 cases recorded in 2021 and 2022.

The virus was present in 2023 (117 cases), but then increased in the first quarter of 2024, when the number of infections was already higher than in the entire previous year.

Many children in Europe still die unnecessarily before age of five: WHO report

Historic level of measles in Morocco

Aside from the seasonal occurrence of the virus, health authorities are concerned about new cases that are being imported.

According to Public Health France (SpF), 13 cases have been imported by people who have stayed in Morocco since the beginning of the year in several regions of France, compared to 26 cases for the whole of 2024.

The cases concerned children under 5 and young adults, who required hospitalisation, with 11 admissions in January alone.

Morocco has been experiencing an epidemic of “historic level” and France has urged travellers to check their vaccination status before visiting the kingdom.

Since late 2023, the North African country has reported more than 25,000 measles cases, 6,300 confirmed cases and 120 deaths, according to the National Centre for Public Health Emergencies.

Even though vaccination remains the best protection against the disease, immunisation rates have fallen in recent years.

The vaccine hesitancy, driven by misinformation, was made during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Moroccan authorities have scaled up vaccination against measles in recent months in a bid to control the outbreak.

Five years on from the Covid-19 pandemic, what legacy has the virus left?

Rise in cases in the US

Elsewhere, in the southwestern United States, a measles outbreak has killed two people and infected nearly 230, according to the latest figures released Friday.

In February, an unvaccinated child died of measles in Texas, and last week, an adult from New Mexico – which neighbours Texas – also died from the disease.

In France, vaccination for measles has been mandatory since1 January, 2018, with a first dose at 12 months and the second between 16 and 18 months.

Vaccination can prevent the onset of the disease after contact with a case, provided it is administered within 72 hours.

The incubation period for the disease lasts ten to twelve days, and the average time for the rash to appear is 14 days. The leading cause of death is pneumonia in children and acute encephalitis in adults.

(With newswires)

With data showing less than 20 percent of people ordered to leave the EU currently do so, the European Commission unveiled a planned reform of the bloc’s return system, including making it easier to lock up undocumented migrants.

“We are creating the scope for member states to explore new solutions for return,” Magnus Brunner, the EU commissioner for migration, told a press conference in Strasbourg on Tuesday afternoon.

A souring of public opinion on migration has fuelled hard-right electoral gains in several EU countries, upping pressure on governments to harden their stance.

Migrant centre in Germany feels the heat from rising far right

Led by Sweden, Italy, Denmark and the Netherlands, EU leaders called in October for urgent new legislation to increase and speed up returns and for the commission to assess “innovative” ways to counter irregular migration.

‘Innovative’ measures

Most controversial is the creation of “return hubs” outside the European Union, where failed asylum seekers could be sent pending transfer home.

This is not possible at present as under EU rules migrants can be transferred only to their country of origin or a country they transited from, unless they agree otherwise.

The proposed regulation would allow EU countries to strike deals with other nations to set up such centres.

Agreements will be possible only with countries where human rights “are respected”, and minors and families with children will be exempt, according to the text.

“We are creating the legal frame, we’re not creating the content,” Brunner said of the hubs.

Fraught with legal and ethical concerns, some experts say return hubs are an expensive and impractical idea that is unlikely to see large-scale uptake any time soon despite the commission’s proposal.

The text also envisages an expansion of the conditions under which undocumented migrants can be detained – previously a last resort.

EU leaders embrace foreign ‘return centres’ to counter illegal migration

Authorities will be authorised to hold those considered at risk of absconding or who pose a security risk for up to 24 months, as well as those who do not cooperate with return procedures.

Detention would also be an option used while measures were taken “to determine or verify” someone’s identity or nationality, according to the plan, which needs backing from parliament and member states to become law.

Such measures were “essential” to ensure that the system was not abused and migrants ordered to leave did not move from one member state to another, Brunner said.

“This will give people back the feeling that we have control over what happens in Europe,” he added.

“We want to put in place a truly European system for returns, preventing absconding, and facilitating the return of third-country nationals with no right to stay,” commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said at the weekend.

France calls for robust EU cooperation on immigration, deportations

‘Lives in limbo’

The UK recently abandoned a similar scheme to deport illegal migrants to Rwanda. Meanwhile, Italian-run facilities to process migrants in Albania – at an estimated cost of €160 million ($175 million) a year – are currently bogged down in the courts.

Return hubs will conceivably face a similar slew of legal challenges if they are set up, said Olivia Sundberg Diez of Amnesty International.

“We can expect drawn out litigation, probably costly centres sitting empty and lives in limbo in the meantime,” she said.

Amnesty International points out that the Commission itself discarded the concept of return hubs in 2018.

“It is well aware that these proposals will lead to human rights violations, waste millions of euros and alienate allies – at a time when the EU needs friends” the organisation said.  

Eve Geddie, director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office called the proposals “a new low” for Europe.

France and UK find common ground on tackling illegal Channel crossings

Yet proponents say there are few viable alternatives.

“If we are not going to do the return hubs, what will we do instead is my question? We have tried other systems for many years, it doesn’t work,” Johan Forssell, Sweden’s migration minister, told AFP.

Irregular border crossings into the EU were down 38 percent to 239,000 last year after an almost 10-year peak in 2023, according to EU border agency Frontex.

(with AFP)

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for a “surge” in European defence spending, urging the continent to take greater responsibility for its security.

Tuesday’s remarks at the European parliament in Strasbourg coincide with French President Emmanuel Macron’s gathering of military chiefs from 30 European and NATO countries in Paris to discuss Ukraine and wider security challenges.

“Europe’s security order is being shaken,” von der Leyen warned, stressing that the continent can no longer assume “America’s full protection”.

“The time of illusions is now over. Europe must step up and take charge of its own defence,” she declared. “We need a surge in European defence. And we need it now”.

Macron hosts European military chiefs to discuss Ukraine security guarantees

Strengthening deterrence

Von der Leyen’s call comes as US President Donald Trump’s commitment to Ukraine and NATO has faltered, raising fears that Washington may scale back its security role.

Meanwhile, his openness to negotiating with Russia over Ukraine has sparked concerns that Kyiv could be pressured into an unfavourable deal.

“Putin cannot be trusted – he can only be deterred,” von der Leyen asserted, noting that Russia is outspending all of Europe combined on defence.

However, she expressed confidence in Europe’s ability to rise to the challenge: “We all wish for peace. But if we unleash our industrial power, we can restore deterrence against those who seek to do us harm,” she added.

Europe at a crossroads: can the EU unite amid shifting US ties?

Next steps for European defence

Thursday’s address comes as the European Commission has proposed redirecting cohesion funds – normally earmarked for poorer EU regions – towards defence and easing restrictions on military investments by the European Investment Bank.

With defence high on the agenda, EU leaders will meet at a summit in Brussels next week to further develop a common strategy.

Ahead of this, the Commission will publish a white paper outlining options to “substantially boost financing for European defence.”

“The European Council will continue to drive this work forward – to build our deterrence and strengthen security,” according to European Council President Antonio Costa.

Some in the EU Parliament are calling for joint borrowing, similar to measures taken during the Covid-19 crisis, however opposition remains from member states like Germany.

The conflict in eastern DRC was the focus of a new meeting between Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and his Angolan counterpart, João Lourenço, mediator of the crisis tearing apart the region, in Luanda on Tuesday.

According to the two presidents, discussions could begin between Kinshasa and the M23 armed group.

After Tshisekedi, and Lourenço had a one-on-one meeting, Angola‘s presidency explained on social networks that it would “establish contacts with the M23, so that the delegations of the DRC and the M23 conduct direct negotiations in Luanda in the coming days, with a view to negotiating a definitive peace in this brother country.”

The Southern African country has been trying to mediate a lasting ceasefire and de-escalate tensions between Congo and neighbouring Rwanda, which has been accused of backing the Tutsi-led rebel group.

Authorities in Kigali still deny providing arms and troops to M23 rebels, and say Rwandan forces are acting in self defence against the Congolese army and militias hostile to Rwandans, especially Tutsi.

M23 rebels have seized multiple cities in eastern Congo, including the two biggest cities and provincial capitals of North and South Kivu, since January.

This brings an escalation to a long-running conflict rooted in the spillover into Congo of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide and the struggle for control of Congo’s vast mineral resources.

Listen to our podcast: The crisis in the DRC and the African Union response

Towards direct negotiations?

In Kinshasa, the presidency has since the beginning of the conflict refused direct discussions with the M23 armed group.

President Tshisekedi considers that any negotiations should take place directly with Rwanda, which he described as the “master” of the M23 at the end of February.

But the Congolese authorities now assure that they are “taking note” after the meeting in Luanda, and waiting to see “the implementation of this Angolan approach.”

Tina Salama, the spokesperson for the Congolese presidency, pointed out that a framework for negotiations already exists in the so-called Nairobi process.

A summit of the Southern African region bloc (SADC) devoted to the DRC is now taking place this Wednesday.

The crisis will also be discussed at the 8th EU-South Africa summit, which will take place on 13 March in Cape Town.

And a new meeting of the United Nations Security Council will be devoted to the conflict in the east of the DRC, on 4 April.

(With newswires)

There are some explanations for France’s 22 percent gender pay gap – women work fewer hours on average and in lower-paid jobs. But even doing the same job and putting in the same hours, women still earn 4 percent less than men, and a barrage of legal measures hasn’t managed to change that. We look at what’s going on with economist Anne Eydoux and lawyer Insaff El Hassani – founder of a company helping women negotiate salaries. El Hassani highlights negative images around wealthy women and how France’s “female wage”, dropped in 1946, still impacts the way some employers view women’s salaries. (Listen @0′)

France has downsized its ambitions to increase the amount of organic agriculture after a drop in consumer demand for organic food . After years of growth, especially during the Covid pandemic, inflation and a distrust in labelling have turned consumers away from buying organic produce, even as new farmers are drawn to the prospect of working in a different way. At the recent annual agricultural fair in Paris, farmers and others working in the organic sector talk about how they are adapting to the new economic reality, and the need to raise awareness of the value of organic food, beyond the price tag. (Listen @17′)

France is marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of composer Maurice Ravel, whose most famous piece, Boléro, is considered an avant-garde musical expression of  the machine age. (Listen @9’50”)

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompeani. 

Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, Apple podcasts (link here), Spotify (link here) or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).

France’s handover of its sole base in Côte d’Ivoire and a pullout in January from Chad are part of a broader reduction of the French army’s presence across the region.

“What we are living in now is a transformational age,” international relations expert Federico Donelli of Trieste University told RFI.

“Many traditional players like France, for example, in that region of Africa are downgrading their own engagement in this area. Not because they have some economic or political constraint but because the local states want them to leave the region.”

Donelli believes the door is now open to new players, such as Turkey.

“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has invested heavily in Africa, quadrupling Turkey’s embassy presence across Africa in the past two decades. Erdogan, a devout Muslim, also plays the Muslim card and reminds his African audiences of France’s colonial past,” he says.

Insurgent threats

However, Eylem Tepeciklioglu of Ankara’s Social Sciences University believes the breakthrough for Turkey came with the French military failing to deal with insurgent threats in the Sahel and broader West Africa.

“The image of France is in tatters because the regional countries criticise French missions for failing to help them fight with terrorist groups and for bringing more harm than good,” explains Tepecikoglu.

Tepeciklioglu claims Erdogan’s Africa policy caught the regional zeitgeist.

“Together with rising anti-French sentiments, this brings opportunities for other countries to step in, and Turkey has several defense or mutual cooperation agreements with Sahelian countries. And according to some sources, Turkey has deployed military advisers and drones at the Abéché base in Chad,” adds Tepeciklioglu.

Macron’s Africa ‘reset’ stumbles as leaders call out colonial overtones

Deepening Senegalese and Turkish military ties was on the agenda at an Istanbul meeting in October. Shortly after the high-profile gathering, Senegal called for the removal of French forces.

Turkey’s vibrant arms industry selling battle-proven weapons invariably cheaper than its Western competitors, as well as having few, if any, restrictions on use, is complementing Ankara’s traditional diplomatic tools in its bid to broaden its influence.

“Turkish defense products are now very popular in African markets. So this also applies to Sahelian countries,” explains Tepeciklioglu, “For example, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Chad acquired Turkish drones. While other Sahelian countries acquired other Turkish military equipment.”

Overstretch

Turkey remains a relatively small player against the giants of Russia, China, and the United States in the battle to secure economic and diplomatic influence. 

But the growing competition between Western and Eastern powers could be to Turkey’s advantage, says Donelli.

 “So, for an African state, establishing a security agreement with Turkey is less costly in political terms in comparison with relations with Russia because that doesn’t mean ‘I break with the West, but I’m doing something with a NATO member’. This is really important,” adds Donelli.

Turkey and Italy consider teaming up to seek new influence in Africa

But Turkey’s rapid expansion into Africa does not come cheap what with diplomatic representations across the continent, growing military presence, such as army and naval bases in Libya and Africa.

“Turkey is expanding too much. This is called overstretch in diplomatic language,” warns International relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara Middle East Technical University.

“So, Turkey’s military and economic capabilities are actually limited. The more you expand, the more you have to pay,” he says, adding that such a strategy would not be sustainable.

With the Turkish economy mired in crisis and Erdogan looking to improve ties with Europe, including France, analysts say Turkey could be ready for cooperation rather than rivalry in Africa.

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday – here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week.

Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all!

Facebook: Be sure to send your photos to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner!

More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write “RFI English” in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure to subscribe to see all our videos.

Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you!

Our website “Le Français facile avec RFI” has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bilingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard.

Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”. According to your score, you’ll be counselled to the best-suited activities for your level.

Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it.” She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it!

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

In addition to the news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more.

There’s Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, The International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. 

Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone.

To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. 

Teachers take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr  If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. 

Another idea for your students: Br. Gerald Muller, my beloved music teacher from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, has been writing books for young adults in his retirement – and they are free! There is a volume of biographies of painters and musicians called Gentle Giants, and an excellent biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., too. They are also a good way to help you improve your English – that’s how I worked on my French, reading books that were meant for young readers – and I guarantee you, it’s a good method for improving your language skills. To get Br. Gerald’s free books, click here.

Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. N.B.: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload!

This week’s quiz: On 8 February, I asked you a question about our article “French PM pushes through budget, faces second no-confidence vote”. That’s because French Prime Minister François Bayrou used Article 49.3 – a special executive power – to push the budget through. The Parliament does not take kindly to Article 49.3, because the executive branch can use it to bypass their votes.

After it went through, a no-confidence motion was immediately brought forward by the hard-left France Unbowed party. At that time, it was not thought the no-confidence motion would pass, because the Socialists said they would vote against it. My question to you was: Why did France’s Socialist party say they would vote against the no-confidence motion brought by the France Unbowed party? 

The answer is, to quote our article: “The Socialist Party said in a press release that it did not want to see France in an extended period of financial limbo and would therefore, ‘in a spirit of responsibility’, not back the no-confidence vote.”

They held to their word: The Socialist party did not back the no-confidence vote – France has a budget now, and the same prime minister, François Bayrou. 

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: “Is the favorite child the worst child?”

Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us!

The winners are: RFI English Listeners Club member Nasyr Muhammad from Katsina State, Nigeria. Nasyr is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Nasyr, on your double win !

Also on the winner’s list this week are: Reepa Bain, the secretary of the RFI Pariwer Bandhu SWL Club in Chhattisgarh, India; Mukta Banu, a member of the Shetu RFI Listeners Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh; RFI English Listeners Club member Dipita Chakrabarty from New Delhi, India, and last but not least, RFI English listener Murshida Parvin Lata, the vice – president of the Sonali Badhan Female Listeners Club in Bogura, Bangladesh.

Congratulations, winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “One Woman” by Beth Blatt, Graham Lyle, and Fahan Hassan, performed by the United Nation Women Singers; “Toy Symphony” by Leopold Mozart; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Nubian Lady” by Kenny Barron, performed by Bobbi Humphrey and her orchestra.  

Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, take another listen to the first story on Alison Hird and Sarah Elzas’ Spotlight on France podcast number 124, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 31 March to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 5 April podcast. When you enter, be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

Click here to learn how to win a special Sound Kitchen prize.

Click here to find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club.   

The sharp decline in US-Ukraine relations has raised doubts about American support for Europe, as the continent assesses its ability to defend itself against a threat from Russia.

Donald Trump’s decision to cut military aid to Ukraine this week signals a  shift in US foreign policy and raises questions about America’s commitment to Europe’s security.

From shortages in the number of tanks and the availablity of artillery, to the debate over a unified European army, leaders must decide whether to bolster national forces or embrace deeper military cooperation.

As France and the UK guard their nuclear arsenals and Russia tests Europe’s resolve, can the EU build a credible deterrent, or will it continue to rely on America?

The Director for Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa at the Institute for Economics and Peace, Serge Stroobants, explained to RFI that Europe lacks the capacity to react quickly to security threats, with defence procurement bogged down by fragmentation and slow production timelines.

As early as 2016, Germany’s defence industry acknowledged that no major projects would reach completion for at least six to eight years. Today the projections are even worse.

“If you want to invest quickly in the military – into defence, into new equipment and weapon systems – these need to be bought off the shelf outside of Europe,” with the US, Turkey, and South Korea as key suppliers, he says.

Defence neglected

Beyond military upgrades, Europe faces a broader challenge as its entire economic and state system must adapt to meet modern security demands.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s recent pledge to cut red tape for defence procurement is a step in the right direction, Stroobants says, but it comes too late and under pressure from events rather than forward planning.

“The problem is – as is so often with the EU – we are doing this under the pressure of the events. We’re not doing this in advance. We’re not planning. We don’t have a strategy.”

Despite being a continent of 500 million people – and the world’s third-largest economic and military power – Europe remains unable to ensure its own security due to a longstanding lack of strategic foresight and neglect of defence spending.

As it stands, a unified EU defence force remains a challenge due to Europe’s struggle to coordinate military policy alongside foreign diplomacy and development.

Stroobants explains that peace and security are based on three pillars – diplomacy, development and defence. “When you look at the EU, this has been done for almost 75 years, but if you are not able to integrate foreign policy and foreign development…and have common influence outside of European borders? Well, it doesn’t really help to only unify just one of those three pillars,” he said.

While the EU has made progress in development and soft power, true strategic influence for the bloc requires the full integration of defence and diplomacy to establish an undivided foreign policy and a stronger global presence.

‘Europe must do the heavy lifting’ in Ukraine, needs ‘US backing’: UK’s Starmer

Reshaping Europe

“For 30 to 35 years now, we have been divesting from defence, but it’s much more than defence. It’s the entire society that has lived with the idea that we would live eternally in peace,” Stroobants says.

He argues that to independently deter Russian aggression, European nations must go beyond bolstering their military capabilities – they need to rethink their entire strategic approach.

“If you want to be ready, you need to invest in defence…but you also need to reshape your society and your infrastructure,” he adds.

He also points out that with France and the UK as Europe’s only nuclear powers, their cooperation on a nuclear umbrella remains uncertain. France insists its deterrent will stay national but may engage allies without losing autonomy. Both nations favour a “coalition of the willing” over an EU or NATO-led approach, prioritising national security.

‘Deterrance and power’

While Moscow takes America’s military threat seriously and views European states as weak, Stroobants added,  Europe must take concrete steps to change this perception and restore credible deterrence.

European security hinges on two key concepts: deterrence and power. Deterrence relies not just on military capability but on the will to use it – because, as Stroobants puts it, “you can have 20,000 nuclear warheads, but if you have nobody who is strong enough to use them, they are not going to be a deterrent.

“And that’s exactly what’s happening with the EU at the moment”.

True power – accroding to Stroobants – is essentially a combination of military, economic, and diplomatic strength,comboined with a clear strategy and the political will to act.

Britain holds back as France pushes for truce between Russia and Ukraine

While Europe possesses significant resources, it lacks a unified vision on how to confront Putin’s Russia and define its role in an increasingly aggressive global order – leaving it strategically adrift and unable to deter adversaries effectively.

The absence of key nations – including the Baltic states – from a recent high-level security meeting in London only underscores the challenge of consolidating a unified European deterrent.

“After having lived in the military for 30 years, in Europe and under the NATO umbrella, not incorporating all the allies or member states [at high level meetings] is really strange,” he said.

For Stroobants, Europe now is facing the disintegration of alliances that have taken over seven decades to build.

Officially recognised by the United Nations in 1977, International Women’s Day (IWD) originated from the labour movements of the early twentieth century.

On 8 March, women around the world – and throughout the month in some countries – are celebrated and recognised for their social, cultural, economic and political achievements.

The day also serves as a call to action to accelerate progress towards gender parity.

In 2025, the United Nations will mark International Women’s Day under the theme: “For All Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.”

While the situation for women in parts of Africa is undeniably influenced by conflicts, disasters, and insecurity, this episode focuses on progress and empowerment.

Empowering

Spotlight on Africa’s first guest is Magalie Lebreton Traoré, an expert in digital transitions across the African continent at the United Nation’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).

As Unesco leads training for women in AI across Africa’s five regions, Magalie joins us to discuss how women are taking the lead in shaping high-tech industries, particularly artificial intelligence. This technological leap presents significant opportunities for women’s leadership and innovation.

Moreover, a study published in Nature revealed that 79 percent of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) could be improved or achieved through AI.

To tackle gender and geographical inequalities in AI, Unesco has made these issues a priority in its Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence – the first global standard-setting framework in this field, unanimously adopted by Unesco Member States in November 2021.

Celebrating

And to broaden the conversation, we also talk to a curator and two artists from Johannesburg in South Africa, who are organising a special exhibition to highlight the work of artist-mothers and women artists caring for families.

Lara Koseff is a curator at INCCA, the Independent Network for Contemporary Culture & Art in Johannesburg. She has established the second edition of ‘Art After Baby‘, with the support of the National Arts Council South Africa.

These female artists and mothers have been selected to receive support and mentorship in order to complete and exhibit a body of work in solo exhibitions at Victoria Yards in Johannesburg until the end of March.

Lara Koseff, Siviwe James and Phumelele Kunene join us on the line from South Africa.

Episode mixed by Erwan Rome.

Spotlight on Africa is produced by Radio France Internationale’s English language service.

In a packed conference hall in an Istanbul hotel, Ahmet Turk, a leading member of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Dem Party, read a statement by Ocalan calling for the organization, which he founded, to disarm and dissolve itself, declaring an end to the decades-long conflict.

 The PKK, designated as a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States, has been fighting for autonomy and Kurdish minority rights in Turkey since the 1980s.

Ocalan, imprisoned in a Turkish jail since 1999, made his disarmament call after the PKK suffered significant military setbacks in recent years.

 “The PKK is almost finished within the borders of Turkey,” explained Mesut Yegen, a political scientist at the Istanbul-based Reform Institute.

However, Yegen claims with the PKK now primarily based in northern Iraq on Turkey’s frontier, while its affiliate in Syria, the SDF, controls a large swathe of territory bordering Turkey all sides still have an interest in peace.

“We know that the Turkish state needs a peace process because it’s worried about the future development in the region in Syria and Iraq,” added Yegen.

Turkey looks for regional help in its battle against Kurdish rebels in Iraq

Cautious response

The Turkish government gave a cautious response to Ocalan’s statement, saying it’s waiting for the PKK to disarm. The PKK leadership based in Iraq, ahead of Ocalan’s statement, declared it is looking for gestures from the government before any disarmament.

“The peace process in Turkey will largely depend on what emerges, what kind of a deal emerges inside Syria,” Asli Aydintasbas, a visiting senior fellow with the Brookings Institution in Washington, said.

“So we’re also seeing Turkey be more cautious. That doesn’t mean, you know, Turkey won’t reverse course if it feels there’s no room to go with Syrian Kurds or inside the peace process in Turkey.”

Turkish armed forces are massed on the Syrian border with Ankara, demanding the SDF merge with the Syrian army under the control of Syria’s new rulers, with whom the Turkish government has close ties.

For now, the SDF leader Mazloum Abdi declared his force is not bound by Ocalan’s disarmament call while demanding Ankara end its ongoing attacks on its troops.

Turkey’s Saturday Mothers keep up vigil for lost relatives

Scepticism

Analyst Mesut Yegen adds that ending the PKK conflict will come at a price for Ankara.  “They’re (PKK) expecting that in return for that, the state promises that at least a kind of autonomy or status for Syrian Kurds is going to be recognised by the Syrian regime, the new regime, and that the Turkish state also supports this kind of solution.

“In addition to this, of course, the expectation is that some reforms will be implemented in Turkey with regards to the Kurdish question.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has distanced himself from the current efforts to end the conflict, other than saying a historic opportunity exists for Kurds and Turks to live in peace but offering no concessions.

For months, a crackdown on Turkey’s legal Kurdish movement continues, with the removal of elected mayors and arrests of journalists and human rights activists. 

Trial of alleged PKK figures accused of financing terror begins in France

Turkish commentator on Turkey’s Politikyol news portal, Sezin Oney, warns unless the causes of the conflict are addressed, there’s little hope of a permanent peace.

 “Probably, any disarmament or any disbanding of PKK would be a gimmick,” warns Oney.

“It wouldn’t be a real actual disbanding, and it might just appear in a year under a different name. Because they would still have the pretext to argue that armed struggle is necessary because the Kurds in Turkey don’t have their democratic rights.”

With previous peace efforts failing, opinion polls indicate that the public remains sceptical of this latest effort. But for 75-year-old Ocalan, analysts warn it may be his last chance of any hope of freedom.

Madhya Pradesh is often referred to as the Heart of India. Located right in the middle of the country, the Indian region shows everything India has to offer through its abundant diversity. The IFTM trade show, which took place in Paris at the end of September, presented the perfect opportunity for travel enthusiasts to discover the region.

Sheo Shekhar Shukla, Managing Director of Madhya Pradesh’s tourism board, sat down to explain his approach to sustainable tourism.

“Post-covid the whole world has known a shift in their approach when it comes to tourism. And all those discerning travelers want to have different kinds of experiences: something offbeat, something new, something which has not been explored before.”

Through its UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Shukla wants to showcase the deep history Madhya Pradesh has to offer.

“UNESCO is very actively supporting us and three of our sites are already World Heritage Sites. Sanchi is a very famous buddhist spiritual destination, Bhimbetka is a place where prehistoric rock shelters are still preserved, and Khajuraho is home to thousand year old temples with magnificent architecture.”

All in all, Shukla believes that there’s only one way forward for the industry: “Travelers must take sustainable tourism as a paradigm in order to take tourism to the next level.”

In partnership with Madhya Pradesh’s tourism board.

Also known as the Land of the Beautiful Islands, Malaysia’s landscape and cultural diversity is almost unmatched on the planet. Those qualities were all put on display at the Malaysian stand during the IFTM trade show.

Libra Hanif, director of Tourism Malaysia, explained the appeal of the country as well as the importance of promoting sustainable tourism today: “Sustainable travel is a major trend now, with the changes that are happening post-covid. People want to get close to nature, to get close to people. So Malaysia being a multicultural and diverse [country] with a lot of natural environments, we felt that it’s a good thing for us to promote Malaysia.”

Malaysia has also gained fame in recent years, through its numerous UNESCO World Heritage Sites, which include Kinabalu Park and the Archaeological Heritage of the Lenggong Valley.

Green mobility has also become an integral part of tourism in Malaysia, with an increasing number of people using bikes to discover the country: “If you are a little more adventurous, we have the mountain back trails where you can cut across gazetted trails to see the natural attractions and the wildlife that we have in Malaysia,” says Hanif. “If you are not that adventurous, you’ll be looking for relaxing cycling. We also have countryside spots, where you can see all the scenery in a relaxing session.”

With more than 25,000 visitors at this IFTM trade show this year, Malaysia’s tourism board got to showcase the best the country and its people have to offer.

In partnership with Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board. For more information about Malaysia, click here.