Latest news with #Élysée
LeMonde
2 days ago
- Business
- LeMonde
The French government is stepping in to rescue Eutelsat
On Friday, June 20, President Emmanuel Macron is expected at the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget and aims to make the event a turning point for France and Europe's space strategy. "We are witnessing a dramatic acceleration of the space sector" that "is being privatized at breakneck speed with extremely ambitious projects, especially from the Americans, but also from Chinese players." It is also "becoming militarized very, very quickly," explained an Élysée adviser ahead of the president's midday speech from the "Paris Space Hub" – the Le Bourget hall devoted entirely to the sector. The war in Ukraine has highlighted Europe's dependence on Starlink, Elon Musk's satellite communications network. "Europe needs to "act independently, not be dependent on external solutions," the Élysée acknowledged. In this context, the government announced on June 19 that it would strengthen the state's stake in Eutelsat, the French satellite operator whose low-Earth orbit constellation is, for now, the only viable European alternative to Starlink. To achieve this, France's State Participation Agency (APE, the government's shareholdings agency) will take a major share in Eutelsat's €1.35 billion capital increase; the APE alone will contribute €717 million. At the same time, it will purchase the 13.6% stake currently held by Bpifrance, bringing its total holding to 29.9% – just below the threshold that would trigger a mandatory takeover bid for the entire company.
Economic Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Economic Times
The real reason Brigitte Macron allegedly slapped French President Emmanuel Macron — here's what reports say
Reasoning For Brigitte Macron Slapping Emmanuel Macron Caught on Camera Live Events No Hand-Holding — A Sign of Tension? A Long-Standing Relationship FAQs (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel A moment between French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, has sparked headlines and gone viral as video footage appeared to show the First Lady slapping her husband while disembarking from a presidential plane after the pair were reportedly seen "bickering", as per a the Élysée initially rejected the video but later confirmed the news, describing it as "playful teasing," according to The Express. An express close to Macron told The Express called it a "harmless scuffle" and accused the negative reaction on "pro-Russian circles," as per the to the report, an official from the Macron team mentioned that, "It was a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh. It was a moment of closeness," quoted The READ: Nvidia to report quarterly results on Wednesday — here's what investors should watch for As per the viral video of the incident, it can be seen that Macron was taken aback when Brigitte's hands hit Macron in the face as they arrived in Vietnam for a tour in Southeast Asia, as per the the 47-year-old president touched his face before waving towards the crowd waiting for them, and his 72-year-old wife, wearing a red blazer, took position behind him as they began to exit the plane, reported The the pair started to descend the airstairs side by side to the concrete of the runway, as per those who were present, the president and his wife did not hold hands while walking down, and Brigitte preferred to use the handrail rather than clasp the palm of her beloved, reported The to the report, Macron was only 15 years old when he began a relationship with his future wife more than 30 years ago, and she was then a mother of three and also his French literature to Macron's team, no. Officials described it as 'playful teasing' and a moment of personal humor between the described some 'bickering,' but there's no suggestion of a serious argument.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Macron dismisses viral moment with wife as 'joking around' after disinformation claims backfire
French President Emmanuel Macron allegedly argued that video images showing his wife Brigitte pushing him away with both hands in the face on Monday were a pro-Russian disinformation campaign. "Brigitte's hands #Macron brought to the PR's face at #Hanoï : the Élysée initially denied the veracity of the images, suggesting a video generated by AI and relayed by pro-Russian accounts, before finally authenticating the sequence and evoking a moment of "complicity," a post from the French outlet, Brèves de presse, claimed. Although Macron's office initially denied the authenticity of the images, The Associated Press later confirmed them as genuine. Emmanuel Macron's Wife Seen Shoving Him In The Face In Viral Clip As France's First Couple Arrives In Vietnam His office has continued to downplay the incident following the initial attempt to suggest a pro-Russia disinformation campaign. "It was a moment where the president and his wife were decompressing one last time before the start of the trip by horsing around. It's a moment of complicity. It was all that was needed to give ammunition to the conspiracy theorists," his office said. Read On The Fox News App Macron has also told reporters that the couple were just joking around. "We are squabbling and, rather, joking with my wife," he said, adding that the incident was being overblown into "a sort of geo-planetary catastrophe." France's Macron Meets With Trump At The White House Video of the incident showed a uniformed man opening the plane door as Macron was seen wearing a suit and standing in the doorway. Brigitte Macron's arms – in red sleeves – could be seen reaching out and pushing Macron away, with one hand covering his mouth and part of his nose while the other was on his jaw. The French president turned his head away but suddenly noticed news cameras capturing the moment. He quickly smiled and waved before exiting the door frame. Macron and his wife later disembarked the stairs of the aircraft together. The French president offered his arm, though the first lady – seen wearing a red blazer – did not take hold of it. The video quickly went viral and was mainly promoted by accounts that have been accused of being habitually hostile to the French leader. "For three weeks … there are people who have watched videos and think I shared a bag of cocaine, that I had a fight with the Turkish president, and that now I'm having a domestic dispute with my wife," said Macron. "None of these are true. Everyone needs to calm down."Original article source: Macron dismisses viral moment with wife as 'joking around' after disinformation claims backfire
Fox News
28-05-2025
- General
- Fox News
Macron dismisses viral moment with wife as 'joking around' after disinformation claims backfire
French President Emmanuel Macron allegedly argued that video images showing his wife Brigitte pushing him away with both hands in the face on Monday were a pro-Russian disinformation campaign. "Brigitte's hands #Macron brought to the PR's face at #Hanoï : the Élysée initially denied the veracity of the images, suggesting a video generated by AI and relayed by pro-Russian accounts, before finally authenticating the sequence and evoking a moment of "complicity," a post from the French outlet, Brèves de presse, claimed. Although Macron's office initially denied the authenticity of the images, The Associated Press later confirmed them as genuine. His office has continued to downplay the incident following the initial attempt to suggest a pro-Russia disinformation campaign. "It was a moment where the president and his wife were decompressing one last time before the start of the trip by horsing around. It's a moment of complicity. It was all that was needed to give ammunition to the conspiracy theorists," his office said. Macron has also told reporters that the couple were just joking around. "We are squabbling and, rather, joking with my wife," he said, adding that the incident was being overblown into "a sort of geo-planetary catastrophe." Video of the incident showed a uniformed man opening the plane door as Macron was seen wearing a suit and standing in the doorway. Brigitte Macron's arms – in red sleeves – could be seen reaching out and pushing Macron away, with one hand covering his mouth and part of his nose while the other was on his jaw. The French president turned his head away but suddenly noticed news cameras capturing the moment. He quickly smiled and waved before exiting the door frame. Macron and his wife later disembarked the stairs of the aircraft together. The French president offered his arm, though the first lady – seen wearing a red blazer – did not take hold of it. The video quickly went viral and was mainly promoted by accounts that have been accused of being habitually hostile to the French leader. "For three weeks … there are people who have watched videos and think I shared a bag of cocaine, that I had a fight with the Turkish president, and that now I'm having a domestic dispute with my wife," said Macron. "None of these are true. Everyone needs to calm down."
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Macron team in chaos over Brigitte ‘shove'
Emmanuel Macron's communications team is in disarray over the Brigitte 'shove', with splits reportedly emerging on how to handle the furore over viral footage of France's first couple in an apparent marital dispute in Vietnam. The video in question showed Mrs Macron raising her hand and pushing her husband's face moments before they stepped off their presidential jet to be greeted by delegates in Hanoi on Sunday evening. With online reaction snowballing, the Elysée initially suggested that it was fake, AI-generated footage. In a sharp reversal, it later admitted that the images were real, but that claims France's First Couple were having some kind of dispute were wide of the mark. 'It was a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh. It was a moment of closeness,' said an Elysée aide. The panicked reaction – and u-turn – reflected simmering 'tensions within the Elysée's communications unit' according to state radio channel France Info. One Macron ally told the channel that the Élysée 'ballsed up' by first talking about fake images. Credit: Reuters Another insisted that they had to act quickly: 'When they don't, it turns into the conspiracy theory sphere, we're in a world where there's a need for clarity so as not to let crazy stuff flourish.' France Info said Elysée spin doctors were struggling to set the right tone. 'On its social networks, the Élysée almost presents itself as a news fact-checking unit, issuing one denial after another,' it said. Philippe Guibert, a commentator on Europe1 radio, said that whatever really happened behind the scenes, the reaction smacked of a 'very, very poor communication exercise'. 'The best thing would have been to say nothing and wait for it to die down because it's ridiculous compared to current world events.' Fellow commentator Jean-Claude Dassier also bemoaned a 'catastrophic' PR reaction over what for him was 'clearly a row' but not an affair of state. 'Why haven't we heard from Brigitte? For once, it would have been useful to have her plain and simple explanation.' Paris Match, the weekly glossy magazine, leapt to the Macrons' aid with a fawning photo story showing France's first couple looking radiant and entitled: 'Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron forget the row and get their smile back at a state dinner in Vietnam.' 'Their faces betrayed nothing of the controversy raging in the French media and on social networks,' it wrote. 'Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron were all smiles and relaxed as they attended the state dinner hosted by Vietnamese president Luong Cuong and his wife Nguyen Thi Minh Nguyet on Monday evening as part of the couple's official visit to the country.' On Tuesday, the couple was seen arm in arm as the president arrived at Hanoi's University of Science and Technology to deliver a speech. On Monday night, Mr Macron blasted 'crackpot' conspiracy theorists for seeking to intensify speculation around the state of his marriage. He pointed out that he had recently been falsely accused of taking cocaine with Sir Keir Starmer and Germany's chancellor Friedrich Merz, and of having a physical altercation with Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who held onto his finger. 'My wife and I were squabbling, we were rather joking, and I was taken by surprise,' Mr Macron told reporters. Now it has 'become a kind of planetary catastrophe, and some are even coming up with theories', he added. 'For three weeks, there have been people who have watched videos and who think that I shared a bag of cocaine, that I had a mano-a-mano with a Turkish president and now that I am having a domestic dispute with my wife. 'In these three videos, I took a tissue, shook someone's hand and just joked with my wife, as we do quite often. Nothing more,' he went on. 'None of this is true… so everyone needs to calm down.' Meanwhile, Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, who had actively promoted the cocaine disinformation earlier this month, wrote on Telegram that Mr Macron had received 'a right hook from his wife'. She said Mr Macron's advisers would try to explain away the gesture by blaming Russia. She quipped: 'Maybe it was the 'hand of the Kremlin?'' Mr Macron's visit to Vietnam, the first by a French president in almost a decade, comes as he aims to boost France's influence in south-east Asia and position the country as a 'third way' between the US and China.
