In a presidential campaign dominated by a revanchist and nativistic far right, Christiane Taubira’s presumptive run for the Elysée Palace has more than a soupçon of poetic license, of quiet rage against the dying of the left. It may also be the last chance for her moribund camp to find a voice in an election it appears doomed to lose.

A former justice minister and icon of the French left, Taubira took another step towards a widely whispered-about presidential run on Sunday, saying she would submit to a citizen’s primary vote later this month, which she is tipped to win. The move all but confirms her second presidential run, 20 years after she became the first Black woman to seek France’s highest office.

News of Taubira’s candidacy has sent ripples of excitement among France’s increasingly despondent left-wing voters, of the kind only Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the leftist firebrand, can rival. However, it also adds one more name to an already cluttered field of candidates fighting over a diminishing pool of votes, prompting many analysts to question the pertinence of her belated Elysée run.

“If she somehow manages to unite the reformist left behind her, then her candidacy could be a game-changer,” said political analyst Thomas Guénolé, though quickly cautioning: “Without unity, however, she will become just one more element in a ‘Balkanised’ (and hopeless) left.”

Talk of the left’s chronic divisions is a sensitive issue for Taubira, a maverick who has long shouldered the blame for the far right’s shocking breakthrough in the first round of the 2002 presidential election. Running as a left-wing radical at the time, Taubira picked up just 2.3% of the vote – a relatively small tally but enough to keep the Socialist favorite, Lionel Jospin, out of the run-off.

“She was made a scapegoat for Jospin’s defeat, unfairly so,” said Guénolé, noting that others on the left had siphoned away more votes from the Socialist candidate.

Twenty years on, the once mighty Socialist Party has shrunk to a minor player in France’s political landscape, leaving the left as a whole rudderless and divided. Between them, the seven left-wing candidates currently in the race for the Elysée Palace account for just over a quarter of the electorate, according to polls. Only one – the far left’s Mélenchon – has touched double digits so far, but even he remains far off the 17% to 20% threshold deemed necessary to reach the crucial second round of voting.

Both Mélenchon and Yannick Jadot, the Green candidate, have repeatedly rejected the idea of a citizen’s primary, leaving only a motley group of struggling candidates – including the Socialist Party’s mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo – among Taubira’s potential challengers. According to her supporters, Taubira, a prolific writer and passionate orator whose words have even been put into song, is the only one with the potential to energise voters.

Rebel at heart

A staunch feminist and a champion of minorities, Taubira, 69, is best known for shepherding a same-sex marriage bill into French law in 2013 when she served as justice minister in François Hollande’s Socialist government. She did so while facing an angry backlash from the conservative and far-right opposition, and with only lukewarm support from her cabinet colleagues.

“Opening marriage and adoption to same-sex couples is an act of liberty, of equality and of fraternity,” she told lawmakers in one of several fiery debates in parliament, echoing France’s Republican motto. She met the opposition’s insults with lyrical flourishes and witty put-downs, remaining calm and composed even when anti-gay-marriage protesters levelled racised slurs at her.

“Taubira is a symbol of anti-racism by virtue of who she is, what she achieved, and the vile, racist abuse she endured,” said Guénolé. “The battle over same-sex marriage also made her an icon of equality.”

Taubira had already made her mark as a champion of progressives more than a decade earlier, authoring landmark legislation in 2001 that recognised slavery as a crime against humanity. It was a personal triumph for the then little-known MP from faraway Guiana, a former French colony in South America, where convicts from metropolitan France were banished up until 1953, a year after her birth.

One of 11 siblings, Taubira was raised in Guiana’s capital Cayenne by her single mother, a nursing assistant who died at age 49. As she quipped in a 2012 memoir, she was born a “[w]oman, Black, poor, what fabulous capital! Every challenge to take up, the promise of a life of exhaustion. But life is more seditious than one thinks.”

A seditious, rebellious streak would run throughout her political career, which began in the ranks of a Guianese pro-independence faction alongside her second husband Robert Delannon, who was jailed in the late 1970s for planning to blow up an oil and gas facility. Taubira soon abandoned the separatist cause and shifted towards more moderate politics, though she never lost her independent spirit.

“Sometimes to resist is to stay, sometimes to resist is to leave,” she tweeted decades later, in January 2016, as she quit the justice ministry in protest at controversial plans to strip French-born dual nationals of their citizenship when convicted of terrorism.

Prior to her departure, Taubira had championed a divisive overhaul of prison sentencing, seeking to institute probation in place of jail terms for petty crimes in an effort to reduce overcrowding in France’s penitentiaries. But her efforts met with resistance from cabinet colleagues and eventually jarred with the mood of a nation deeply shaken by a string of jihadist terrorist attacks.

Battle of ideas

Taubira’s perceived softness as justice minister gave France’s right wing a key line of attack. So did her stances on racism and the legacy of slavery, issues some candidates in the upcoming presidential elections are keen to brush under the rug. While France’s reckoning with its colonial past is still in its infancy, for the likes of far-right pundit and presidential candidate Eric Zemmour, “repentance” has already gone too far.

An advocate of the “Great Replacement” theory, according to which elites are plotting to replace French nationals of white stock with immigrants, Zemmour has dominated the early stages of the campaign in the raucous, aggressive and iconoclastic manner of a Donald Trump – albeit with the veneer of cultured sophistication generally expected of a French presidential candidate.

Some have suggested Taubira’s main aim is to lock horns with Zemmour in a battle of ideas, knowing full well that the Elysée Palace is already out of sight. In the words of Thomas Legrand, France Inter radio’s political editorialist, Taubira’s bid “would offer an alternative narrative, one that is republican, fraternal, racially diverse and universal, as opposed to Eric Zemmour’s bleak and depressing identity politics”.

A diminutive figure, like Zemmour, Taubira is known for her lofty rhetoric and frequent literary citations – particularly from the anticolonial poets of the Négritude movement, such as Aimé Césaire and her fellow Guianan Léon-Gontran Damas. She is equally at ease with talk of Black identity as she is with the French Republic’s core, universal values – a versatility that is anathema to the far right and to others from across the political spectrum.

Having surveyed voters from the immigrant-rich Seine-Saint-Denis area northeast of Paris, mainland France’s poorest department, sociologist Marie Peretti-Ndiaye said Taubira’s candidacy has raised hopes of a less toxic divide on certain issues, such as the place of Islam in France. Among those surveyed, the former justice minister “came across as intelligent, cultured and knowledgeable, far from the cheap shots and petty controversies of the presidential campaign”, she said. “At the same time, the respect and admiration for her combativity was tempered by scepticism about the chances of a woman winning the presidency.”

In recent months, Taubira has consistently topped surveys of left-wing voters’ preferred political leaders. However, she also scores highly in surveys of politicians who are most rejected by the broader electorate.

Should it garner momentum, Taubira’s candidacy “would instantly become a hateful obsession of the far right, whose worst nightmare she embodies”, Guénolé noted. Whether she can alter the narrative of the campaign will depend on her ability to rally the reformist left behind her, he cautioned, stressing the need to flesh out a political and economic platform of which little or nothing is known – and to fulfill at least two conditions.

“The first is to embody something powerful against the far right – and Taubira certainly does. The other is to be a contender for the all-important presidential run-off,” he said. “If she fails to meet the second criteria, all the media will talk about is Taubira’s miserable polling figures. And her candidacy will go the way of others on the left.”

Source: France 24

France takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union on Saturday, affording President Emmanuel Macron the chance to pose as the EU’s de facto leader in the run-up to national elections in April.

The 44-year-old has never made any secret of his ambitions to be the motor for further European integration, serving over the last four years as a dynamic sidekick to the more steady German chancellor Angela Merkel in Europe’s power couple.

With Merkel now retired and the timely gift of the rotating presidency of the EU Council from January 1, Macron has announced an ambitious agenda for the 27-member bloc that could also serve his domestic campaign for re-election.

“The year 2022 must be a turning point for Europe,” he said in a New Year’s Eve national address that hailed the EU’s role during the Covid-19 crisis.

Referring to the French presidency, he vowed that “you can count on my complete commitment to ensure that this period, which comes around every 13 years, is a time of progress for you”.

The centrist, who made his Europhile views a key part of his political campaign when winning the presidency in 2017, is hoping it will again serve him in elections scheduled for April 10 and 24.

“The EU presidency gives him a welcome platform to put his European record to the forefront and differentiate himself from his rivals and bring new proposals, new ideas to the table,” said Claire Demesmay, an expert at the Marc-Bloch think-tank in Berlin.

Strutting on the international stage has also long been a popular move for any French president.

“The French like nothing more than the image or impression of France being ‘at the controls’,” said Pierre Sellal, a former French diplomat at the French mission to the European Union.

To mark the start of the six-month presidency, France illuminated historic buildings across the country including the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe in the blue of the EU flag on New Year’s Eve.

Other observers have noted that the French logo for the presidency includes the letters U and E for “Union Europeene” with a grey arrow in the middle that appears to create another letter — a sideways M for Macron.

German support?

Each European country gets a chance at holding the rotating presidency of the Council, which gives the member state an opportunity to set the official agenda for fellow leaders in the bloc — within limits — and organise meetings of ministers.

But although the first French presidency since 2008 offers opportunities for Macron, it is also seen by observers as holding risks.

His agenda to make Europe “powerful” — in defence, technology or its own border security — risks being overshadowed in the short term by the accelerating Covid-19 health crisis.

Sebastien Maillard, director of the Jacques Delors Institute, a pro-EU think-tank based in Paris, says Macron will also face pressure to deliver after having ramped up expectations.

“He can’t get to the first round (of the presidential election) on April 10 without having obtained some results from the European presidency,” Maillard said. “That’s the challenge for him, but it can also be a real opportunity.”

European leaders are set to meet in Paris on March 10-11, which could be a chance for them to agree on a major reform of the bloc’s budget rules.

Much will depend on Germany’s new chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose coalition government is seen as sceptical on budget reforms, but supportive of Macron’s agenda.

France’s presidency is “an important opportunity we want to seize together to strengthen Europe and make it fit to rise up to tomorrow’s challenges,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told AFP on Friday.

Other European leaders such as Hungary’s right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whom Macron labelled a “political opponent” in December, might be in no mood to bolster the French leader’s chances of re-election. 

Domestic concerns

As symbolic head of the European Council, Macron will have to walk a fine line as he also launches his campaign for re-election, which is expected to be announced formally in February at the latest.

Sellal, the former French diplomat, said France’s partners would take a dim view of “attempts to instrumentalise the presidency for electoral reasons”.

Domestically, opponents have already accused Macron of electioneering and say he should have delayed France’s turn at the helm until after the elections.

“It’s a mistake. He’s doing it for his own interests, not those of France,” his rightwing rival Valerie Pecresse from the Republicans party said last month.

Eurosceptic opponents such as far-right figures Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour will also waste no opportunity to portray the whole exercise as meaningless.

“It’s been four-and-a-half years that he’s been in power and he’s obtained nothing and done nothing in the European domain, apart from achieving a sort of submission to Germany in the name of the Franco-German couple,” Le Pen told RMC radio in mid-December.

Source: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron Friday cancelled a trip to Mali to meet transitional leader Colonel Assimi Goita after France announced new measures to battle the pandemic.

Macron was to meet Goita on Monday, for the first time since the Malian colonel was sworn into office in June after leading the country’s second coup in less than a year.

Macron was also supposed to pay a Christmas visit to French troops stationed there to fight a jihadist insurgency in the country.

“This decision was taken for consistency between the measures announced at national level and the president’s international agenda, and to not expose our troops” as France battles a fifth wave of the virus, the president’s office said in a statement.

The office said, however, that a Christmas meal prepared by the president’s chef would be flown over to French military personnel stationed in the Sahel country.

It added that organising the meeting with the Goita had been tricky even before the cancellation.

Macron had wished to meet Goita in the presence of Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo and Chad’s leader Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, but Chad refused this format.

Chad and other neighbouring countries are also involved in the fight against the jihadists.

The planned visit was due at a tense time in relations between France and Mali.

Paris is deeply concerned over the possibility that Russian mercenaries could be deployed in the African country as France begins to draw down its troops there.

Castex cancels Jordan visit

With France in the grip of its fifth COVID-19 wave, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced a new push on Friday to get people vaccinated and said people would have to show proof of vaccination to enter some venues.

Castex also cancelled a trip planned to visit French troops stationed in Jordan from December 31 to January 1.

Source: REUTERS

French President Emmanuel Macron declared his future “ambitions” for the country but declined to formally declare he was running for a second term in a lengthy prime-time TV interview on Wednesday that saw him defend his record as an economic reformer.

After a rare two-hour press conference last week to outline his European ambitions, the 43-year-old head of state sat down with journalists from the TF1 channel as campaigning ahead of next April’s vote hots up.

“If your question is ‘are you looking ahead?’,’do you have ambitions for our country, for French people beyond next April?’. Clearly,” the centrist replied when asked if he would be running for another five-year term.

“I never thought that we could do everything in five years,” he said during the interview which was pre-recorded but broadcast on Wednesday evening.

But he argued he needed to stay focused on governing before giving a “firm and sincere response” about his candidacy to the country.

As well as his recent media work, the country’s youngest-ever president when elected in 2017 has also been touring small-town and rural France in recent weeks in what has resembled grassroots campaigning.

Like his predecessors including Francois Mitterrand and Nicolas Sarkozy, observers say he appears intent on playing for time, using the presidential megaphone and the benefits of his office until as late as possible.

“I’ll keep going until the final quarter of an hour,” he said.

France’s role holding the rotating presidency of the European Union from January 1, which will see Macron set the official EU agenda, is also seen as another factor favouring a late declaration.

Level field?

Recent gains in the polls from some of his opponents next year might also explain his sudden willingness to open up to the media after years of keeping journalists at arm’s length.

On Friday, RTL radio is set to broadcast a special event in which he answers questions from school children.

Last week, a poll by the Elabe survey group showed the former investment banker losing the second round of the election on April 24 for the first time to right-winger Valerie Pecresse from the Republicans party.

Pecresse, the combative head of the greater Paris region and a former minister under Sarkozy, has enjoyed a huge bounce in the polls since clinching her party’s nomination on December 4.

She led criticism about Wednesday night’s TV interview which she said was evidence of an uneven playing field for those eyeing the Elysee Palace.

“We can’t have a president-candidate who has television channels open up for him whenever he wants it and is campaigning for hours on end, while his opponents get five minutes on a panel to respond to him,” she said on Monday.

She has promised to complain to France’s media regulator, the CSA, which monitors the time given to presidential candidates to ensure each of them gets a fair billing.

Regrets

Macron was asked repeatedly about mistakes early in his campaign when he was accused of talking down to voters, one of the factors behind a huge backlash from anti-government protesters known as “yellow vests”.

“I’ve learned to have a lot more respect for everyone, I think I can say,” Macron said, admitting that his “desire to shake things up” had sometimes been counter-productive.

“With some of my words I hurt people,” he said.

Socialist party politician Boris Vallaud decried the interview as a “like a public confession without a single new idea.”

Macron defended his reforms to labour laws, making it easier for companies to fire workers, as well as tax cuts which he said had made the country able to confront the Covid-19 crisis in a stronger position.

Unemployment in France fell to 8.1 percent in the last quarter, down from 9.5 percent when Macron was elected, but remains above the average of the other countries that use the euro.

He also implied that major pension reform, which he abandoned when the Covid-19 pandemic began, would be part of his programme for a second term.

He admitted that his initial ideas were too “anxiety-inducing” and needed to be reformulated, but the objective would remain the same.

“We need to be prepared for the idea of having to work for longer,” he said.

Source: AFP

Almost 100 Conservative lawmakers voted on Tuesday against new coronavirus restrictions, dealing a major blow to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s authority and raising questions about his leadership.

After a day of frenzied failed lobbying, Johnson was handed the biggest rebellion against his government so far by his party over measures he said were necessary to curb the spread of the new Omicron variant.

The new rules, which included ordering people to wear masks in public places and use COVID-19 passes for some venues, passed thanks largely to the main opposition Labour Party.

But the revolt piles pressure on Johnson, already under fire over scandals such as reported parties in his Downing Street office last year – when Britain was in a COVID-19 lockdown – and a pricey refurbishment of his apartment.

Rebelling lawmakers said the vote was a warning shot that he needed to change how the government was operating, or he would face a leadership challenge.

Some 99 Conservatives opposed plans for the COVID passes, a much higher number of rebels than was expected. Originally the official figure was put at 98, but the number was later revised upward.

Among those voting against the government was lawmaker Louie French who was only elected as a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) at the start of the month, while media reported that former Prime Minister Theresa May was among 17 others who abstained.

Many Conservatives say some of the new measures are draconian, with several questioning the introduction of a certificate of vaccination or proof of a negative COVID-19 test to enter some venues, such as nightclubs.

Others used the votes as an opportunity to vent their anger at Johnson, believing the man who helped the Conservatives win a large majority at a 2019 election is squandering the party’s successes by self-inflicted missteps and gaffes.

But despite the rumblings of discontent, Conservative Party insiders say there is not enough of a groundswell against Johnson to dislodge him now, although they hope the vote will be a “wake-up call” for the prime minister to reset his agenda.

“He’s got to now be in some danger,” Conservative lawmaker Geoffrey Clifton-Brown told Sky News. “And he’s got to realise that because if he doesn’t realise that, then he will be in much bigger danger … I’m still backing him. But he’s got to change.”

‘Huge spike’

Britain reported 59,610 new COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, the highest figure since early January and the fifth highest recorded since the outbreak of the pandemic in March last year.

More than 5,300 cases of Omicron have been recorded, with 10 people hospitalised. One person has died after contracting the variant, which is set to become the dominant strain in the capital London.

Before the vote, the government had mounted a campaign to keep lawmakers in check, with Johnson warning his ministers there was a “huge spike” in Omicron cases heading Britain’s way, and that the measures were needed to protect people.

Ministers tried to win over the Conservative rebels, noting that people who have not had two vaccinations can instead offer proof of a negative lateral flow test to gain access to indoor venues of more than 500 people.

Health minister Sajid Javid told lawmakers he firmly believed in “individual liberty” but that “the responsible decision to take is…to move to plan B in England”.

But their arguments fell on deaf ears. In addition to the 99 Conservatives who voted against the passes, 40 voted against expanding the requirement for mask wearing.

“I am sure that the prime minister will understand the strength of feeling within the party about the constraint of liberties,” Conservative former minister David Jones told Reuters. “He is a libertarian himself and I have no doubt that he will listen to the message from his party.”

Source: REUTERS

Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Free Democrats (FDP) signed a coalition deal on Tuesday that sets out how to accelerate a green transition and modernise Europe’s biggest economy when they take office this week.

The alliance between the unlikely bedfellows, the first such grouping at a national level, brings to an end 16 years of conservative-led government under Angela Merkel who did not stand for a fifth term in a September election.

The SPD’s Olaf Scholz is due to be elected chancellor by the Bundestag lower house of parliament and officially take office on Wednesday.

Under the logo “Dare More Progress”, leading members of all three parties signed the 177-page agreement in front of television cameras.

“This should be a morning for a new start,” Scholz said.

Greens election campaign manager Robert Heinrich tweeted “It’s done.”

FDP leader Christian Lindner said the last few weeks had been about talking and now it was time for action.

“From this week we want to work on making progress. We are under no illusion, we face big challenges,” he said.

The parties presented the agreement last month but needed members to approve it before signing it.

Democracy ‘binds us together’

Speaking to reporters at news conference in Berlin, Scholz said his new three-party government will focus on working with democracies around the world and praised US President Joe Biden for strengthening a community of democratic countries.

“It is now clear, what binds us together,” said Scholz.

His comments came days before Biden hosts a virtual summit on democracy focused on the challenges and opportunities facing democracies.

The US has invited more than 100 countries, including Taiwan, to the summit. Washington’s major rivals, China and Russia, have not been invited.

Confirming that his first foreign visit as chancellor would be to France, Scholz also stressed the importance of strengthening the European Union.

Source: REUTERS

Sweden’s parliament on Wednesday approved Magdalena Andersson as the country’s first female prime minister, tapping the finance minister who recently became the new leader of the Social Democratic party.

Andersson was tapped to replace Stefan Lofven as party leader and prime minister, roles he relinquished earlier this year.

The development marked a milestone for Sweden, viewed for decades as one of Europe’s most progressive countries when it comes to gender relations, but which had yet to have a woman in the top political post. Lofven’s government has describes itself as “feminist,” putting equality between women and men at the heart of national and international work.

In a speech to parliament, Amineh Kakabaveh, an independent lawmaker who supported Andersson, noted that Sweden is currently celebrating the 100th anniversary of a decision to introduce universal and equal suffrage in the Scandinavian country.

“If women are only allowed to vote but are never elected to the highest office, democracy is not complete,” Kakabaveh who is of Iranian Kurdish descent, said.

“There is something symbolic in this decision,” she added.

In the 349-seat Riksdag, 117 lawmakers voted yes to Andersson, 174 rejected her while 57 abstained and one lawmaker was absent.

In all, the opposition cast 174 votes against Andersson but under the Swedish Constitution, prime ministers can be named and govern as long as a parliamentary majority — a minimum of 175 lawmakers — is not against them.

Lofven has been leading the Swedish government in a caretaking capacity until a new government is formed, something expected Friday. Andersson likely will form a two-party, minority government with her Social Democrats and the Green Party.

Andersson, 54, sought to secure the backing of the two smaller parties that supported Sweden’s previous center-left, minority government led by Lofven — the Left Party and the Center Party. Both abstained from voting against Andersson.

After days of talks, Andersson and the Left Party reached a deal to win the latter’s support. The deal focused on pensions and they on a supplement of of up to 1,000 kronor ($111) for about 700,000 pensioners on low incomes.

Source: AP

A televised election debate on Sunday marks one of the last chances for Germany’s struggling chancellor candidate Armin Laschet, from Angela Merkel’s conservative camp, to close the gap with his centre-left rival.

Two weeks before voters head to the polls, gaffe-prone Laschet will face off against Finance Minister Olaf Scholz from the Social Democrats (SPD) and Annalena Baerbock from the left-leaning Greens in the second of three primetime debates.

The first general election of the post-Merkel era has become an unexpected nailbiter in Europe’s top economy.

Surveys show support for Merkel’s centre-right CDU/CSU bloc plummeting to historic lows of around 20 percent while the SPD has come from behind to lead at around 26 percent.

With the Greens polling at 15 percent, a number of coalition outcomes are possible — but observers say the chances of one-time frontrunner Laschet taking the crown are fading fast.

Bild newspaper said the debate could be make-or-break for Laschet.

“To turn the tide, he needs a clear success,” it wrote.

Viewers were left unconvinced by Laschet’s performance in the first debate last month, when Scholz was declared the winner.

– ‘Historic debacle’ –

Laschet, the premier of North Rhine-Westphalia state, has been on a downward spiral following a series of missteps, including being caught on camera laughing during a tribute to victims of Germany’s deadly floods in July.

Scholz meanwhile, although often described as wooden and uncharismatic, has run an error-free campaign.

As vice-chancellor and guardian of the nation’s finances, the 63-year-old has positioned himself as the continuity candidate and the natural heir to Merkel’s legacy — despite hailing from a rival party.

The CDU/CSU alliance that has dominated Germany’s post-war politics now faces a “historic debacle” on September 26, Der Spiegel weekly news magazine wrote.

In a sign of growing nervousness, conservatives have gone on the attack against Scholz, accusing him of riding on Merkel’s coat-tails and of trying to steer Germany to the left.

Even Merkel, who is bowing out after 16 years in power and had vowed to stay out of the election battle, has joined the fray.

She visited a flood-hit region with Laschet and used a speech in parliament this week to cast him as the best choice to succeed her, saying he stood for “stability” and “centrism”.

– Comeback king? –

The still immensely popular chancellor also distanced herself from Scholz, criticising him for not unequivocally ruling out a coalition with the radical-left Linke party, which wants to disband NATO.

The Linke is currently polling at six percent and could theoretically be part of a three-way coalition with the SPD and the Greens.

Addressing a congress of the CSU on Saturday, Laschet said such a coalition would lead to “less security” and endanger Germany’s economic growth through higher taxes and more bureaucracy.

Laschet, 60, also courted controversy by saying that the Social Democrats were “on the wrong side” at key moments in Germany’s post-war history.

The remark drew an immediate rebuke from the SPD, which said it revealed Laschet’s “panic” at his slump in the polls.

SPD general-secretary Lars Klingbeil said the CDU/CSU alliance had “lost its dignity under Laschet”, adding: “It belongs in the opposition.”

Laschet has played down the importance of Sunday’s debate, saying the battle for the chancellery would be fought until polling day.

But Laschet’s fate could be sealed sooner, with record numbers expected to vote by post because of the pandemic.

Although Laschet has a track record of snatching unexpected last-minute victories, Spiegel said a typical Laschet comeback “is looking unlikely”.

Source: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron is among leaders set to attend a regional summit Saturday in Iraq, with the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan and a deadly jihadist attack in Kabul overshadowing the meeting.

Macron warned on Saturday the Islamic State group “remains a threat”, speaking days after an affiliate of the jihadists claimed a deadly bombing in Kabul.

“We all know that we must not lower our guard, because Daesh (IS) remains a threat, and I know that the fight against these terrorist groups is a priority of your government,” Macron said, after a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi in Baghdad, where the summit of Middle East leaders begins at midday.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II are also due to attend the summit, while the foreign ministers of arch-foes Iran and Saudi Arabia will also be present.

Organisers have been tight-lipped on the agenda, but the meeting comes as Iraq, long a casualty of jihadist militancy, tries to establish itself as a mediator between Arab countries and Iran.

Iraq seeks to play a “unifying role” to tackle crises shaking the region, sources close to Iraqi Al-Kadhemi have said.

Oil-rich Iraq has been caught for years in a delicate balancing act between its two main allies, Iran and the United States.

Iran exerts major clout in Iraq through allied armed groups within the Hashed al-Shaabi, a powerful state-sponsored paramilitary network.

Baghdad has been brokering talks since April between US ally Riyadh and Tehran on mending ties severed in 2016.

Macron aims to highlight France’s role in the region and its determination to press the fight against terrorism, his office said.

The French president considers Iraq “essential” to stability in the troubled Middle East, it added.

‘More urgent than ever’

An Islamic State (IS) group affiliate claimed Thursday’s suicide bombing in Kabul that killed scores of people, including 13 US service members.

The attack has revived global concerns that the extremist organisation, which seized swathes of Syria and Iraq before being routed from both countries, is emerging anew, analysts said.

The blast came during the final days of US-led evacuations from Afghanistan after the Taliban’s lightning takeover.

“These events show that it has become more urgent than ever to back the political process in Iraq and involve its neighbours,” a source close to Macron said.

“A solution to security threats in the region, including Daesh (IS), depends on a stable, sovereign and prosperous Iraq,” the source added.

A decade after the 2003 US-led invasion that ousted dictator Saddam Hussein, the IS group in June 2014 announced a “caliphate” in territory seized in Syria and Iraq, routing the badly prepared Iraqi army without a fight and seizing almost a third of the country.

France was part of a US-led coalition established to battle the extremists.

Iraq declared the IS group territorially defeated in December 2017, but the group still retains sleeper cells and continues to claim bloody attacks.

New IS group ‘strides’

One of the deadliest was a July bombing that ripped through a crowded Baghdad market, killing over 30 people on the eve of a key Muslim holiday.

According to Colin Clarke, senior research fellow at The Soufan Center, the IS group “still has access to tens of millions of dollars and will likely continue to rebuild its network throughout Iraq and Syria”.

Its “primary goal at the moment is to have its affiliates maintain momentum until it can sufficiently rebuild its core in the Levant,” he said. “IS affiliates in sub-Saharan Africa and now Afghanistan will have the opportunity to make strides in the coming year.”

In July, President Joe Biden said US combat operations in Iraq would end this year, but that US soldiers would continue to train, advise and support the country’s military in the fight against the IS group.

Washington currently has 2,500 troops deployed to Iraq.

Rasha Al Aqeedi, senior analyst at Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy, said coalition forces believed Iraq’s security personnel could prevent another IS group advance.

“Maybe they’re not ideal, but they’re good enough for America to leave the country believing that Iraq is not going to live through another 2014,” she said.

Source: AFP

The first round of France’s presidential election will be held on April 10 next year, with the second round scheduled on April 24, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Tuesday.

Legislative elections will take place on June 12 and June 19, he added.

The elections had been the subject of talks between France’s political parties and Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, whose ministry is responsible for preparing and organising the country’s elections.

The other set of dates up for discussion for the two presidential election rounds were a first round on April 17, which falls on Easter Sunday in 2022, and a runoff on May 1, the Labour Day holiday in France.

President Emmanuel Macron was elected to a five-year mandate on May 7, 2017, and took office on May 14.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS, AFP)