When information appeared about Vincent Garenq’s upcoming film, one immediately thought it would be about freedom of speech, about radical Islamism, about society’s fear of it. But the director chose a different angle — this is a film about how the state does not protect its citizen, who is simply doing his job

#state #discussion #CannesFilmFestival #movie #Muse #violence #inventory #SamuelPaty #freedomofspeech #secularism #terrorism #murder #France #extremism

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The Malian military junta is losing control of the situation in the country. This does not mean its rapid or inevitable fall, but the fragmentation of Mali into zones of influence controlled by various groups—where no laws apply—has already taken place. And it seems that Russian military presence has failed to prevent this disintegration.

#Analytics #Africa #VladimirPutin #warcheck #YevgenyPrigogine #Mali #Russia #France #junta #PMCVagran

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After traveling through Russia in 1839, the French aristocrat Astolphe de Custine wrote a book that still shapes Western politicians’ views of the country. But beyond criticism of Russian customs, it also contains an unexpected political theory.

#19thcentury #AstolphedeCustine #bestseller #Decembrists #dissidents #europe #WestandEast #foreignersinRussia #historicalmemory #conservatism #finance #PyotrChaadaev #politicaltheory #Poland #rightandleft #revolution #reforms #RussianEmpire #France #civilization

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Exactly 60 years ago, the USSR began the trial of writers Andrei Sinyavsky and Yuli Daniel, which marked the beginning of the Soviet dissident movement. One of the prosecution witnesses at this trial was the Orientalist Sergei Khmelnitsky — the father of historian of Soviet secret services and «Most» columnist Dmitry Khmelnitsky. Dmitry himself was 12 years old at the time. A couple of years later, Dmitry learned that his father had been a secret NKVD informant, whose denunciation in the late 1940s led to the arrest and imprisonment of two of his friends. After being released during the Khrushchev Thaw, they publicly exposed Sergei Khmelnitsky, and all his close friends turned away from him. Among them was Andrei Sinyavsky. However, few people know that the famous writer himself was recruited by the NKVD at the same time as Khmelnitsky and continued to cooperate with the KGB. Dmitry tells how it all happened in his forthcoming book «Khmelnitsky, Sinyavsky, and the KGB.»

#dissidents #denunciations #interview #historicalmemory #kgb #personalexperience #thaw #SinyavskyandDaniel #repressionsintheUSSR #parentsandchildren #specialservices #France #Emigration

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In early January 2026, Russian journalist and emigrant Evgeny Safronov tragically died near Paris. This story exposed the problem of vulnerability among people experiencing prolonged stress and social isolation, which many emigrants face. We spoke with staff from the Reforum Help psychological support service about the signs of psychological distress and how to help yourself and others during such times.

#Helpontheforum #WarinUkraine #psychology #Russia #suicide #France #Emigration

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The fewer economic, cultural, and simply human ties between Russia and European countries, the more conflict stories there are, the easier it will be to turn toward a possible military clash. No one in Europe wants such a development, but a peaceful Russian-Ukrainian agreement as imposed by the American administration looks like a respite for the aggressor. Therefore, Europe and Ukraine need to build a new structure to deter Russia together, without wasting time.

#Analytics #security #WarinUkraine #weapons #Germany #EuropeanUnion #NATO #truce #Putin #Russia #USA #Trump #Athreat #France

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In December 1965, the President of France was elected by popular vote for the first time. This historic event forever changed the country’s political landscape: even today, all attention is focused on the «prophetic» figure of the head of state, and the presidential model of the republic has become deeply rooted in French political tradition. Moreover, General de Gaulle’s dominance was truly challenged at the ballot box for the first time. But how did the French come to feel the need for a nationwide vote for their national leader? And why does this crucial electoral reform continue to poison France’s political life today?

#elections #state #electoralreform #society #thepresident #France #CharlesdeGaulle

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Surely everyone interested in the country's past has at least once wondered: could it have become different? And if so, under what circumstances? One of the turning points — the events of November 1920 in Crimea. Those days saw the fall of the last anti-Bolshevik regime in the European part of the former empire, the Government of South Russia under Lieutenant General Pyotr Wrangel.

#20thcentury #alternativeRussia #BaronWrangel #WhiteGuard #Bolshevism #CivilWarinRussia #History #Crimea #France #Emigration

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The trial began in Paris two weeks ago, accusing 10 people of online harassment of the First Lady of France. The accused — bloggers and internet publications prone to conspiracy theories — have for years spread rumors that Brigitte Macron was born a man and underwent gender transition. Neither the fact that the woman has three children from her first marriage, nor other obvious circumstances of her life, disproving such extravagant versions from the standpoint of common sense, stopped these claims.

#MAGICIAN #Analytics #BrigitteMacron #theInternet #influencers #informationsociety #conspiracytheories #newethics #Russia #socialnetwork #USA #transphobia #France #haters

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A week after the daring robbery of the Louvre, the Paris police arrested two suspects: as the newspaper Le Figaro found out, one was preparing to board a flight to Algeria, the other planned to flee to Mali. The Paris prosecutor stated that premature disclosure of information about the arrests could harm the interests of the investigation. After all, many thefts of exhibits from the Paris museum remained unsolved for a long time.

#art #History #crime #thelouvremuseum #MonaLisa #museumdetective #picasso #France

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The new prime minister of the country, appointed by President Emmanuel Macron, suddenly turned out to be the very same person who resigned from the same position three days before the appointment.

#Analytics #democracy #pensionreform #governmentcrisis #rightandleft #protests #France #EmmanuelMacron

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The verdict for former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was announced at the end of September in a Paris court and naturally sparked a storm of emotions and commentary. For the first time in history, a French president has been found so guilty that, according to the court, he deserved a punishment of imprisonment without the possibility of reduction to a suspended sentence or application of other leniency measures.

#Analytics #corruption #MuammarGaddafi #NicolasSarkozy #criminalpunishmentandpunishment #France

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At the beginning of September, a meeting took place in Paris with representatives from 35 countries interested in the activities of the «Coalition of the Willing.» The essence of this peacekeeping idea, conceived six months ago, is to station troops from Ukraine's allied countries on its territory.

#Analytics #Belgium #WarinUkraine #Germany #europe #coalition #NATO #Russia #solidarity #Balticcountries #France

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Already as president, de Gaulle liked to say that he was the only politician defending France's interests because he was criticized by both the left and the right. There is some truth to this.

#20thcentury #WorldWarII #elections #democracy #europe #west #historicalmyth #History #conservatism #republic #resistance #France #CharlesdeGaulle

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On August 15, 1945, the Supreme Court of France sentenced Marshal Pétain to death on charges of collusion with the enemy and treason. This historic verdict marked the end of the long journey of the World War I hero who became a symbol of French collaborationism with the Third Reich. It also marked the beginning of a harsh period of postwar purges and persecutions against French citizens who cooperated with the Vichy authorities. The personality of the marshal himself remains a subject of debate, speculation, and contradictions even 80 years later.

#WorldWarII #GeneraldeGaulle #Hitler #SpanishCivilWar #europe #historicalmyth #History #collaborationism #MarshalPétain #FirstWorldWar #rights #resistance #fascism #France

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Right-wing populism is not a universal ideology, and everything beyond anti-globalist and anti-immigrant sentiments is subject to tactical moves that have their local characteristics depending on the local agenda. Yet, it is possible to highlight the reasons for the successes of right-wing populists using the example of Marine Le Pen's party in France.

#Analytics #WarinUkraine #elections #democracy #europe #JeanMarieLePen #MarineLePin #society #rights #Putin #ultraright #France

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There are only two nuclear powers in Europe: France and the United Kingdom. Their combined strength is less than the arsenals of Russia and the USA, but fully sufficient to inflict unacceptable damage on an adversary. While Russian aggression in Ukraine continues and US commitments within NATO do not appear reliable, the stance of leading European countries on nuclear deterrence takes on particular significance.

#Analytics #Entente #UnitedKingdom #militarycooperation #war #west #KirStarmer #coalitionofthewilling #NATO #Russia #Ukraine #France #EmmanuelMacron #nucleardisarmament

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When PSG's plane landed in Paris after their Champions League victory, all the cameras of the welcoming journalists captured the huge inscription QATAR in large letters on its side. No one really hides that the football club is an important part of the «soft power» of the small but wealthy and ambitious Arab state.

#InvestmentsinQatarisports #MiddleEast #MuslimBrotherhood #EuropeanParliament #west #Qatar #ChampionsLeague #lobbying #softpower #RomanAbramovich #sport #France #football #SoccerWorldCup

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Who today could take responsibility both for continuing support of Ukraine, for rearming Europe, and for organizing a more autonomous security system? Obviously, in the absence of competencies within the EU in defense policy, this mission should be taken on by the leading European countries — in fact, these are the countries of the Weimar Triangle. The first signs of agreement between them, shown in the May visits and negotiations, inspire cautious hope. There are no other contenders for such a role anyway.‍

#Analytics #security #WeimarTriangle #VladimirZelensky #war #EastEurope #Germany #DonaldTusk #EuropeanUnion #west #integration #NATO #Poland #weaponsproduction #sanctionsagainstRussia #Ukraine #France #FriedrichMerz #EmmanuelMacron

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