French President François Hollande has vowed to withdraw French troops from Afghanistan before the New Year, placing him in a difficult diplomatic position as he holds his first talks with US President Barack Obama on Friday.
French President François Hollande's new 34-member cabinet has been lauded for having 17 women ministers, the same number as men. Here's a look at some of the other eye-catching figures in France’s freshly appointed ministerial club.
Moments after his first encounter with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday, France’s new president, François Hollande, was already being sized up by the international press.
France’s outgoing President Nicolas Sarkozy came to power in May 2007 on a promise to change French politics, but his approval rating soon sank as the French grew to dislike his brash behaviour and extravagant style.
French centrist figurehead François Bayrou has launched a fresh appeal to moderate voters ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections in June. But for the political middle ground in France, support seems to be dwindling.
With France's Socialist Party tipped to wrestle away their parliamentary majority in June, the party of outgoing president Nicolas Sarkozy, the Union for a Popular Movement, has some lawmakers contemplating a taboo liaison with the far right.
After a bitter campaign and a close presidential election, Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande appeared together at a WWII commemoration in Paris on Tuesday. But the divisions within an increasingly polarised France may not be so easy to reconcile.
Left-wing candidate François Hollande has defeated incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in Sunday's runoff, becoming the first Socialist to win a French presidential election since François Mitterrand in 1988.
Left-wing candidate François Hollande has defeated incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in Sunday's runoff, exit polls say, becoming the first Socialist to win a presidential election since François Mitterrand in 1988.
Left-wing candidate François Hollande has defeated incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in Sunday's runoff, exit polls say, becoming the first Socialist to win a presidential election since François Mitterrand in 1988.
