⏰Weekly Dispatch - 100 days
⏰Weekly Dispatch - 100 days
23 April 2023 - Macron promotes the Ukraine peace summit, Macron’s 100-days to relaunch his presidency, Laurent Wauquiez nourishes his ambition, and Laurent Berger quits as head of the CFDT
The Weekly Dispatch is your weekly update on major events in French and European politics, published on Sundays to give you the ideal summary of current affairs.
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This week
🇺🇦Macron promotes the Ukraine peace summit
🚀Macron’s-100 days to relaunch his presidency
🍝Laurent Wauquiez nourishes his ambition
🙅♂️Laurent Berger quits as head of the CFDT
🇺🇦Macron promotes the Ukraine peace summit
So, let’s go to Ukraine first.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously raised the idea of a “summit on world peace” led by the G7, which would have required the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory.
While this plan had taken a back seat due to the ongoing preparations for a springtime offensive, which is currently also causing great concern amongst Russian forces and telegram channels, it is now resurfacing with a new champion:
French President Emmanuel Macron.
He raised the topic during a call with President Zelenskyy on Saturday 15 April, and has been discussing the necessary steps to make it a success. Naturally, we can assume he has also discussed this with Western leaders such as American President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Following this call, the Ukrainian authorities released the following statement:
"We can put forward any peace initiative, the main point at the base of everything is the withdrawal of Russian troops … If this provision is included, then it can be looked at as a serious plan … We can not rush events and everything will be done at the pace of the Ukrainians , we assure the Elysée. Our desire is to ensure that the war ends as soon as possible, and when the Ukrainians are in a position of strength.”
This is a statement that I think we can all agree with.
With his recent meeting in Beijing with Xi Jinping, the firey interview that set the political world on fire, and a subsequent meeting with Joe Biden off the back of this, Emmanuel Macron is very clearly pushing for a global reaction to pressure Russia out of its genocidal war.
But will it work? Who knows, there’s plenty of resistance.
However, if you’d like to read the translation and breakdown of the fabled interview on Taiwan that had Politico apoplectically misrepresenting key terms, positions and statements?
Click here:
🚀Macron’s 100-days to relaunch his presidency
Next up on the agenda: Emmanuel Macron has given himself a 100-day period to relaunch his presidency and get it back on the rails, following the extremely difficult pension reform process.
To begin with, he gave a speech regarding the pension reform where he hoped to show that he understood the frustrations related to the ongoing three-month protests:
“I heard in the demonstrations an opposition to the pension reform, but also a desire to find meaning in one's work, to improve the conditions, to have careers that allow one to progress in life … anger … in the face of rising prices, refueling, shopping, canteen…No one, especially me, can remain deaf to this demand for social justice.”
With the opposition forces decrying a president who is lost up a creek without a paddle, a media-feeding frenzy, and political opportunists lying the walls in every direction, you can imagine how difficult it will be.
However, there’s a plan that is beginning following a period of waiting out the political violence, allowing opposition forces to exert their energies, and allowing the protests to fatigue.
But what is the plan?
Effectively, the President and the government are planning to launch several projects related to work, safety, health, and other key segments of French society in order to improve security, safety, and the lives of French citizens across the country.
And if you want to hear some specific, then you should subscribe to
and watch for your future brief on this key topic.🍝Laurent Wauquiez nourishes his ambition
I know how passionate you are about the slow-burning return to political power that Laurent Wauquiez is cooking, I’m happy to bring you a new update.
Already plotting to be the 2027 Presidential Candidate for Les Républicains, and considering himself the presumptive nominee after his deal with Eric Ciotti, he has been continuing his use of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region as the testing grounds for his right-wing politics.
And Le Monde published an excellent article covering this in depth.
Having tripled agriculture subsidies since his election in 2015, which will reach €112 million in 2023, with hunters receiving €9 million in additional funding, Wauquiez has gone as far as redirecting European subsidises intended for nature preservation to fund these.
The entirety of his plan to regain power and run for the Elysée is built around becoming the defender of the common people and fighting for ‘real’ right-wing values, and is hoping to beat Marine Le Pen to the punch.
Wauquiez was recently asked why he wants to run for the Presidency, and he had a very simple answer for the questioner:
"I answer you very simply and very clearly: because I'm tired of watching the decadence of France without reacting,"
However, the president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes has taken a very cautious strategy in recent years, preferring to stand back and avoid the limelight, working behind the scenes, building up his team, and his policy agenda.
He prefers to work from within the shadows of the political world, doing what he must to prepare with the implicit support of his party president, Eric Ciotti.
I definitely recommend reading the above article if you want a better understanding of that man, the myth, the legend, who is currently looking like the most likely candidate to lead Les Républicains into their next electoral defeat.
🙅♂️Laurent Berger quits as head of the CFDT
And a final note to cap of this weekly dispatch: Laurent Berger, the Secretary-General of the Confédération Française Démocratique du Travail (CFDT, French Democratic Confederation of Labour), has announced that he will leave his post in June.
Having negotiated and wrestled with the government and President Macron over the pension reform, you would be forgiven for thinking there would be some acrimony between the groups involved, but this isn’t the case.
Having heard the news during his trip to Alsace, the President was very clear that “[Berger] is someone for whom [Macron has] respect, dare I say friendship”, and was clear that he “always worked very well” with him.
The praise didn’t end there, however.
Government spokesperson Olivier Véran likewise praised “a serious, demanding, sometimes tough partner” with whom the government was “able to achieve significant progress for our country in terms of social rights or the evolution of work.”
And these words were echoed across the political spectrum.
With his mandate ending on June 21, he will be replaced by his #2, Marylise Léon. The general secretary of the Confédération Générale du Travail (CGT, General Confederation of Labour), Sophie Binet, praised the “feminization of the trade unions.”
“It was expected. It was announced at the end of June so there will a priori be no impact at the level of the inter-union…Marylise Léon already currently manages the inter-union”
It will be interesting to see if there’s a shift in the dynamics between the President, the government, and the CFDT, particularly as the government has gone on record in the past to state that they worked best with this particular Union.
Regardless, we’ll have to wait and see how this impacts their work!
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There is something special with France and demonstrations. The usual symbolism of bricks, stones, fires, flags, riot police etc :p