During his visit to Djibouti, on December 20 and 21, 2024, Emmanuel Macron welcomed the solid alliance that continues with this key state in the Horn of Africa, despite the withdrawal of numerous French bases on the continent. Under the presidency of Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, Djibouti stands out as an exception thanks to its political and economic stability.
France is playing big: financing a new international airport to strengthen the country's attractiveness, ambitious space cooperation… So many initiatives intended to consolidate the strategic position of Paris in East Africa. An assumed attempt to redefine French influence on a continent in full restructuring.
CV: Christelle Morançais, president of the Pays de la Loire region
> 1975 : she was born in Sarthe and did all her schooling in Le Mans. After obtaining a BTS in commercial action, she worked for twenty years in real estate.
> 2009 : she created her first business, a real estate agency, before founding a second with her husband, whom she met at an Alain Madelin meeting in 1997.
> 2015 : she led the right-wing list in Sarthe during the regional elections and became vice-president of Pays de la Loire.
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> 2017 : she ran for legislative elections in Sarthe, but was not elected by 47 votes. In October, she succeeded Bruno Retailleau as head of the Pays de la Loire region, constrained by the rule on the accumulation of mandates.
> 2024 : in a context of budgetary restrictions, she adopted a regional budget focused on savings, notably reducing cultural subsidies, which made her the number one target of the left.
Claw strike: when Télérama attacks Daoud and Sansal
In an article devoted to Boualem Sansal and Kamel Daoud, the – left-wing – magazine Telerama did not hesitate to describe the two writers as “heroes of the right and the extreme right”, insinuating that they were okay with it. An unwelcome attack against two emblematic figures of the fight for freedom of expression and the criticism of Islamist excesses.
Naturalized French, Kamel Daoud won the Goncourt 2024 prize with Houris, while Boualem Sansal was distinguished in 2015 by the Grand Prix du roman of the French Academy for 2084: The End of the World. High-flying literary distinctions, but clearly not to the taste of Telerama. Meanwhile, Sansal remains imprisoned in Algeria.
In the west, Renaissance and the right hand in hand
The budget voting period sealed unexpected alliances in the west. In Pays de la Loire, the regional budget, criticized by the left, was adopted by the right thanks to the votes of the group of François de Rugy (Renaissance). In La Baule, Mayor LR Franck Louvrier was also able to count on the support of Renaissance elected officials to pass his budget. Towards a recomposition with a view to 2027?
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