Diplomacy
The €30.9 Billion Vote Nobody in Brussels Wants to Discuss
France's parliament approved its EU budget contribution for 2027, but the vote exposed how fragile the consensus behind Europe's next seven-year budget really is.
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The Boarding
France boarded a sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean this week. Moscow calls it piracy. Paris calls it enforcement. Martin Doyle on a helicopter boarding, a false flag, and the shadow fleet both sides are fighting over.
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The Overcapacity Pact
Fourteen economies signed a US-led statement against industrial overcapacity this week. France signed too. China calls it protectionism. Sam Kessler on the pact that names its target without naming it.
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The Last Supporter
Washington leaned on its allies to walk away from a Brussels disinformation conference. Canada and Lithuania walked. France stayed. Victor Lemaire on a very public split over who gets to call out whom.
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The Mène France Isn't In
The Pentagon's number two convened five NATO allies in Poland to talk about the alliance's future. France, Britain and the Baltic states weren't invited. Critics call it a toxic precedent; nobody on the outside has said a word.
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The Piggy Bank
France's Europe minister went on television and said the 4.6-billion-euro fine extracted from Google should count as a 'new revenue stream' for the EU budget. The White House called it extortion. The digital-services tax fight has entered a new round.
Read →Two Speeches, One Podium: Macron and Trump's UN Split Screen
Hours apart at the UN, Trump claimed victory in Gaza and Macron called it a spectacle. Julien on what each man needed the week to mean.
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The Diesel Mène
Washington threatened to shut off diesel exports unless Europe opened its emergency reserves; on October 2, after a call with Trump and a G7 videoconference chaired by Macron, the allies agreed to release 100 million barrels. A mène played with fuel instead of boules — and the shooter holding the biggest threat.
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A Boycott in Orbit
Four American space companies pulled out of Emmanuel Macron's Paris space summit under pressure from Washington — and France answered by drawing its own circle in the sky.
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The Abyss Is Not for Sale
Washington has ordered a fast track for deep-sea mining in international waters. Paris calls it a violation of international law — and France's ambassador for the oceans has an answer: the abyss is not for sale.
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