After a solid week of shelling in Homs, the international community is still scrambling for a plan. Also, Nicolas Sarkozy’s re-election bid steers right and Britain marks milestones for Queen Elizabeth and literary (and journalism) giant Charles Dickens.
This week, we meet France’s least ambitious presidential candidate, discuss how the Franco-German couple is developing into a major campaign theme, and meet a man whose job is at risk due to the dire economic situation.
FRENCH PAPERS, Fri. 10/02/12, French papers react to a sneak peak of Nicolas Sarkozy’s interview in Le Figaro Magazine that will be published tomorrow. Le Figaro applauds the President and his values, while left-leaning Libération calls him "reactionary". Meanwhile, a lot of the French press focuses on the controversy sparked by French car-maker Renault which has decided to build a factory in Morocco.
Former Labour Minister Eric Woerth was placed under formal investigation Thursday for his involvement in a complicated campaign finance scandal that comes inauspiciously close to the expected re-election bid of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
MEDIAWATCH FRANCE, Thurs, 9/2/2012: Newsrooms around Paris are on edge waiting for Nicolas Sarkozy's announcement that he's running for re-election. We take a look at some of the buzz. Also, a French fraudster and a tweeting bishop.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy set the stage for his re-election promises in an interview, saying he intends to hold a referendum on whether unemployed people receiving benefits should be allowed to turn down jobs.
Six candidates for the presidency, including François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy, all turned out to court the Jewish vote at a lobbying organisation's big dinner last night - but is religion relevant to the presidential election?
French President Nicolas Sarkozy warned against the possibility of Israeli military strikes on nuclear-minded Iran at a dinner hosted by France's main Jewish group on Wednesday, which Socialist leader Francois Hollande also attended.
French judges on Wednesday filed preliminary charges against former Labour Minister Eric Woerth for "passive influence peddling" in a scandal linked to the management of the fortune of France's richest woman Liliane Bettencourt.
The "Franco-German couple" is taking on a new political role. Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel, as two conservative leaders, are joining hands not only to salvage the euro but also to boost Sarkozy's re-election bid. Is the German strategy a good one for Nicolas Sarkozy? And is Angela Merkel taking too many risks, given that Socialist François Hollande might end up being president instead?
