France

PARIS, March 30 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France slammed “blind and deadly” violence in Myanmar where the ruling junta’s ruthless crackdown left more than 100 people dead on Saturday, during the deadliest weekend since the military coup.

“The security forces in Myanmar have reached a new stage in blind and deadly violence … and have again used arms against the population, killing more than 100, including very young children,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement.

PARIS (Reuters) - The French government and the European Union’s executive are close to an agreement on the terms of a bailout for Air France, which like other carriers has been hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, Le Monde reported.

The expected deal would see Air France give up fewer airport flight slots at its Paris base than initially sought by the European Commission, notably at Orly airport, the newspaper said in a report published late on Friday.

25 Mar 2021; MEMO: French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Tuesday that his country would reopen its embassy in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, next Monday.

"From Monday, our embassy in Tripoli will be reopened and our ambassador will be able to return to your country," conveyed Macron to President of the Libyan Presidential Council Mohamed Al-Menfi, in Paris.

In 2014, the French diplomatic mission office in Libya closed, although it remained active.

25 Mar 2021; MEMO: French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday warned against "Turkey's interference" in the upcoming French presidential elections in 2022.

In an interview with France 5 television channel, Macron said Turkish attempts to meddle in the upcoming French presidential elections would take the form of "lies" spread by state- run media outlets.

PARIS, March 24 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France will reopen its embassy in the Libyan capital, Tripoli next Monday.

French President Emmanuel Macron revealed this when he received the new President and Vice President of the Libyan Presidential Council at the Elysée Palace on Tuesday.

The gesture signifies support for the interim government.

PARIS, March 21. /TASS/: France will be ready to use the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine if it receives the approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and its production meets the required quality standards, Secretary of State for European affairs in the French government Clement Beaune said in an interview with BFM TV channel on Saturday.

PARIS, March 16 (Xinhua) -- France has entered "a form of third wave (of the coronavirus pandemic) characterized by numerous virus variants," Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Tuesday, stressing that his government still considers vaccination a top priority of its strategy to stem the spread of the virus.

"The outbreak is going into extra time," he told a hearing at the National Assembly, the lower house of France's Parliament, which observed a moment of silence in memory of the 90,000-plus victims of the pandemic one year after the first national lockdown.

PARIS, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Recent summer droughts in Europe were the most severe the region has seen in 2,110 years as climate change has stoked punishing heat waves, according to new research that raises the alarm for ecosystems and agriculture.

Using data from tree rings in living and dead European oaks going back to the time of the Romans, scientists identified a long-term drying trend that suddenly intensified in 2015 beyond anything seen in two millennia.

PARIS (Reuters) - The United States should act quickly to revive Iran’s nuclear deal, because once Iran’s presidential election period kicks off it is unlikely much will happen until later this year, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said on Monday.

Speaking at the European Policy Centre think tank, Zarif repeated Tehran’s longstanding demand that Washington return first to compliance by lifting sanctions.

PARIS, March 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in France rose above four million on Friday, as the health ministry reported 25,229 new infections.

Friday’s increase was lower than the 23,507 new cases reported last Friday, and took the total number of confirmed infections since the start of the pandemic to 4.01 million.

France has the world’s sixth-highest total of COVID-19 cases, just behind Britain, which has had more than 4.24 million infections.