EU elections second round in France

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In today’s news from The Capitals:

PARIS

Europe is watching with bated breath the ongoing developments in Paris after the sweeping victory of far-right Rassemblement national (RN) in the EU elections, prompted President Emmanuel Macron to call for snap parliamentary elections on 30 June and 7 July.

The country’s political establishment is exploring ways to halt the rise of the far right while the rest of Europe is on alert to see what is next for the bloc’s founding member and second-largest economy.

On the left, La France insoumise (LFI, The Left), the Parti socialiste (PS, S&D), les Écologistes-EELV (EELV, the Greens) and the Parti communiste (PC) – decided to form a coalition under the name “Front populaire”.

But a similar bid by the country’s far-right factions did not have the same outcome.

Euractiv’s Théo Bourgery-Gonse analysed why a union of far-right parties, Jordan Bardella’s Rassemblement national (RN) and Eric Zemmour’s Reconquête, did not come to fruition.

Meanwhile, the French right-wing Les Républicains caused shockwaves on Tuesday after their chief, Éric Ciotti, started to forge closer ties with RN.

The move caused friction among Les Républicains, who belong to the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP). First to oppose was the party’s lead candidate, François-Xavier Bellamy.

Hugo Struna and Paul Messad explain the divisions within the party.

But Ciotti’s intentions raised the alarm in Berlin and Brussels, too.

The centre-right CDU/CSU, the largest member in the EPP, threatened to kick Les Républicains out from their common EU party, writes Oliver Noyan.

In Brussels, relations between the EPP and Les Républicains have not been easy lately, especially after the French right party opposed Ursula von der Leyen’s candidacy for the EU elections.

“We are waiting for the dust to settle, and then we will make the necessary decisions”, an EPP official in Brussels told Euractiv, adding that teaming up with RN is a move “going too far”.

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BERLIN

No alliance with Le Pen: German conservatives threaten to kick Les Republicains out of EPP. The potential team-up of the French conservative Les Républicains (LR) with the far-right party of Marine le Pen is making waves in Germany, with the conservative CDU/CSU threatening to kick them out from their common EU party, the EPP. Read more.

Russia-friendly German lawmakers boycott Zelenskyy’s Bundestag speech. Emboldened by gains in Sunday’s EU elections, German far-right lawmakers boycotted the speech by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Bundestag on Tuesday, saying he should stop the war and reach a peaceful settlement with Moscow. Read more.

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PARIS

French left-wing parties build ‘Front populaire’ for Macron’s snap elections. After President Emmanuel Macron shocked France by calling snap elections on Sunday, national left-wing parties called in a joint appeal on Monday for “the formation of a new popular front” to change the country’s political course. Read more.

The rise and fall of France’s far-right union. A union of far-right movements in France, including renegades from the conservatives Les Républicains, appeared to be on the cards, united around the hope of beating President Emmanuel Macron but at the last moment, it all came unravelled. Read more.

French right-wing MEPs divided over national alliance with far right. While Les Républicains leader Éric Ciotti has begun to forge closer ties with the Rassemblement National (RN), the party’s lead candidate, François-Xavier Bellamy, has no intention of doing so, sticking to the EPP line. Read more.

NORDICS & BALTICS

COPENHAGEN

Wake-up call: Danish PM Frederiksen’s first interview after the attack. Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the recent assault on her in Copenhagen was proof that the boundaries in society are changing fast, spurred on by social media, and described the disappointing results for her coalition in the European election as a “wake-up call”. Read more.

EUROPE’S SOUTH

ROME

How EU elections affected balances within Italy’s governing coalition. The outcome of the European election results in Italy could be a signal of moderation for the ruling right-wing alliance led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to the political analyst Lorenzo Pregliasco. Read more. 

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MADRID

Puigdemont’s return unclear as Spain’s controversial amnesty law comes into force. Spain’s controversial amnesty law, pardoning Catalan separatists responsible for illegal actions between 2011 and 2023, officially came into force on Tuesday, but the expected return of former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont to Spain remains uncertain, as on the same day a Spanish judge announced that an arrest warrant for the separatist leader remains in force. Read more. 

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LISBON

Portuguese president notes shift in country’s position on Palestine. President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said Portugal’s official position on the Palestinian question is changing, reminding protesting students that Portugal had recently adopted an official position in favour of Palestine’s entry into the UN as a full member. Read more.

Portugal backpedals on Nutri-score food labelling system. The Lisbon government clarified on Tuesday that the previous executive’s recommendation to adopt the controversial traffic light food labelling system had been issued without proper consultation with food authorities. Read more.

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NICOSIA

Influencer sweeps Cyprus EU elections, acts as a bulwark against far right. As Cypriot members of the European Parliament (MEPs) formally dressed in suits, commentated on the results of the European Parliament on national TV, a newly-elected parliamentarian,  Fidias Panayiotou, in contrast, wore a t-shirt and shorts and celebrated with a “dab” move, a popular hip-hop dance move and meme. Read more.

EASTERN EUROPE

BRATISLAVA

Slovak government delays ‘hot-button’ issues until autumn. As the summer recess of the Slovak parliament approaches, the ruling coalition announced on Tuesday that it will postpone until September the controversial laws on foreign agents and environmental impact assessment, as well as the dispute over the new speaker of parliament, which the coalition parties are contesting. Read more.

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WARSAW

Poland pays tribute to soldier killed in border attack. Sirens blared across Poland during the funeral of a soldier who died last week after being stabbed by a migrant at the border with Belarus – serving as another example of hybrid activities taking place all across NATO, according to Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Read more.

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PRAGUE

Czech far-right party admits failure in EU elections. The Czech Freedom and Direct Democracy (ID) party will convene a committee within the next two weeks to analyse its disappointing performance in the recent European elections, party leader Tomio Okamura announced on Tuesday. Read more.

NEWS FROM THE BALKANS

SOFIA

Bulgarian president blocks common Bucharest Nine position on Ukraine. Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, known for his long-term opposition to sending aid to Ukraine, blocked the adoption of a common position on the provision of military aid to Kyiv at the Bucharest Nine forum in Riga on Tuesday. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Romanian far-right party entering EU parliament for the first time eyes ID. The far-right SOS Romania party, founded just three years ago, most closely aligns with the far-right EU group Identity and Democracy (ID), according to Diana Şoșoacă, the leader of the party that will send two of Romania’s eight far-right MEPs to the new European Parliament. Read more.

AGENDA:

• EU: Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides holds videoconference with WHO Special Envoy for Climate Change and Health Vanessa Kerry;
• Equality Commissioner Helena Dalli holds meetings with Prince Mired Raad Zeid Al-Hussein of Jordan, and Australian Minister Bill Shorten, in the margins of the 17th Conference of States Parties, in New York, United States;
• Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton meets with European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) board members; Meets with stakeholders on electricity infrastructure needs for zero emission mobility (Route35);
• Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Commissioner Iliana Ivanova hosts President of the European Economic and Social Committee Oliver Röpke;

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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Alice Taylor, Liene Lūsīte, Sofia Mandilara]

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