Swiss Market Ends Slightly Higher
Thursday, February 20,2025,18:39
The Switzerland market closed slightly up on Thursday after a choppy session, as investors largely stayed cautious amid concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats, and geopolitical tensions. .. read more..
European Stocks Close Weak As Investors React To Earnings, Economic Data
Thursday, February 20,2025,18:17
European stocks closed weak on Thursday with quarterly earnings updates influencing investors' moves. Worries about a trade war following U.S. President Donald Trump's persistent threats that his administration will levy 25% tariffs on several goods imported into America, and lingering geopolitical tensions rendered the mood cautious. .. read more..
From the frontline: a Ukrainian soldier speaks to FRANCE 24
Thursday, February 20,2025,17:34
Vadym Adamov is a 20-year-old veteran of the Ukrainian army, who fought the battle of Bakhmut. He is also a videographer. For FRANCE 24, he answered François Picard's questions. .. read more..
Zelensky meets US envoy after Trump brands him a 'dictator'
Thursday, February 20,2025,17:21
Volodymyr Zelensky was meeting Thursday with US envoy Keith Kellogg after Donald Trump branded the Ukrainian leader a "dictator" and said the Russians "have the cards" in any talks to end the war. Analysis by FRANCE 24 International Affairs Editor, Kethevane Gorjestani. .. read more..
Twenty-four hours in Ukraine’s Kharkiv, where life goes on despite the war
Thursday, February 20,2025,16:32
Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine’s largest city, is resolutely entering its fourth year of war, with residents stoically coping with emergency laws, night curfews and incessant air alerts. Underground schools have been built, and the city still offers a few leisure activities to ward off fear and help overcome personal tragedies. FRANCE 24 shares the daily lives of the city’s residents over 24 hours. .. read more..
A news conference between Zelensky and Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy is cancel...
Thursday, February 20,2025,15:20
A news conference after talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy was canceled at the request of U.S. officials, a Kyiv official said. More information with FRANCE 24 correspondent in Kyiv, Gulliver Cragg. .. read more..
France's parliament votes to limit use of man-made 'forever chemicals'
Thursday, February 20,2025,15:09
France's lower-house National Assembly voted Thursday to limit the sale and production of items containing dangerous and highly polluting "forever chemicals". Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been used since the 1940s in the mass production of waterproof, stain-resistant or non-stick objects. .. read more..
Putin using Trump ties as 'legitimisation' in Russia, exiled opponent Khodork...
Thursday, February 20,2025,15:09
FRANCE 24 spoke to exiled Russian opponent Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was jailed for a decade until he was pardoned by President Vladimir Putin in 2013. Over the past few weeks, Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump have spoke to each other and agreed to work toward ending the war in Ukraine – a huge diplomatic shift after years of tensions. Putin "has presented this in the country as his legitimisation; a breakthrough in Russia's international isolation", Khodorkovsky said. .. read more..
UK accusers of influencer Tate urge US to stay away from case
Thursday, February 20,2025,14:37
Four British women who have accused notorious influencer Andrew Tate of rape they were "concerned" by reports the US government was petitioning Romania to ease his travel restrictions. Story by James Vasina. .. read more..
Germany: what are the voters' main concerns in the upcoming legislative elect...
Thursday, February 20,2025,14:33
From immigration and Germany's ailing economy to cannabis and gender politics, here is a round-up of the burning issues on voters' minds in the run-up to Sunday's election. Analysis by Armin Steinbach, Jean Monnet Professor of Law and Economics at HEC Paris. .. read more..
Spain's ex-football chief Luis Rubiales fined more than 10,000 euros for unso...
Thursday, February 20,2025,13:46
A Spanish court convicted former football chief Luis Rubiales of sexual assault over the forced kiss he gave star forward Jenni Hermoso and fined him 10,800 euros ($11,300). More information with FRANCE 24 correspondent in Madrid, Sarah Morris. .. read more..
EU says 'Ukraine a democracy, Putin's Russia not' after Trump comments
Thursday, February 20,2025,13:39
In an extraordinary rift, Trump said that Zelensky was a "dictator without elections" who should act quickly or lose his country. The European Union hit back by saying that "President Zelensky was legitimately elected in free, fair and democratic elections." Analysis by FRANCE 24 Chief Foreign Editor, Rob Parsons. .. read more..
Denmark boosts its defence spending by $7 billion, as Nordic countries fear R...
Thursday, February 20,2025,13:26
A mood of panic is spreading across Europe after the dramatic foreign policy shift in Washington. Several Nordic countries today reacted - and took action: Denmark announced an increase in military spending to 3 percent of its GDP over the next two years, as the prime minister cited fears over Russian rearmament. Story by August Hakansson. .. read more..
FTSE 100 Slightly Lower In Cautious Trade
Thursday, February 20,2025,11:21
U.K. stocks are down in negative territory Thursday morning, weighed down by some disappointing earnings. The U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of new tariffs effective April 2nd, weigh as well on sentiment. .. read more..
Russia agrees to resume dialogue with US ‘on all parametres’ of Ukraine war
Thursday, February 20,2025,10:44
Russia is going to resume dialogue with the United States “on all parametres” of the war in Ukraine, the Kremlin said Thursday. The announcement comes just two days after Moscow and Washington held a meeting on Ukraine in Saudi Arabia without inviting neither Kyiv, nor any representatives of its European allies. .. read more..
French pension deficit set to more than double in a decade – despite reform
Thursday, February 20,2025,10:30
Despite France’s recent pension overhaul raising the general retirement age from 62 to 64, the country’s pension deficit is expected to more than double between 2035 and 2045 alone, the French audit office said Thursday. President Emmanuel Macron’s unpopular reform prompted a long series of occasionally violent protests when it was forced through in 2023 .. read more..
Germany: final face off before the legislative elections, Scholz promises to ...
Thursday, February 20,2025,10:02
German voters will go to the polls Sunday to elect a new parliament that will determine how the country is run for the next four years. Conservative Friedrich Merz is the strong favourite to become the next chancellor after a bitterly fought campaign roiled by the rise of the AfD, a far-right party vocally backed by Team Trump. Story by Matthew-Mary Caruchet. .. read more..
Crowfunding weaponry for Ukraine: activist and comedian raises €200 million i...
Thursday, February 20,2025,09:56
In Ukraine, a spirit of defiance is growing, particularly among the many civil society organisations that have been helping the war effort over the past three years - crowdfunding drones and other weaponry for the army. Our correspondent Gulliver Cragg has been to meet the head of one of the biggest such funds - a man who happens to be, just like Zelensky, a former actor with political ambitions. .. read more..
CAC Advances 0.7% As Investors React To Earnings
Thursday, February 20,2025,09:49
French stocks are up in positive territory Thursday morning, rebounding from previous session's losses, as investors track quarterly earnings updates and continue to follow geopolitical news. Concerns about potential new tariffs from the U.S. government and their likely impact on trade and earnings weigh a bit on sentiment. .. read more..
DAX Modestly Higher; Infineon Shines
Thursday, February 20,2025,09:17
German stocks are modestly higher Thursday morning with investors reacting to the latest batch of earnings updates, and digesting German producer prices data and the minutes fro the Federal Reserve's most recent monetary policy meeting. .. read more..
European Shares Flat To Higher In Cautious Trade
Thursday, February 20,2025,09:12
European shares held steady on Thursday after suffering heavy losses in the previous session amid tariff concerns and uncertainty over U.S. rate cuts. .. read more..
European Shares Seen Tad Higher At Open
Thursday, February 20,2025,05:38
European stocks may open on a positive note Thursday after falling sharply in the previous session. .. read more..
Ukrainians dismiss Trump's broadside against Zelensky
Wednesday, February 19,2025,22:46
US President, Donald Trump, has branded Volodymyr Zelensky a 'dictator' who 'refused to have elections'. Defiant Ukrainians are dismissing the extraordinary broadside, saying they have to fight on, even as their key ally engages in talks with the enemy. They're also rejecting the idea of holding elections during the war. Mayors, officials and MPs from across the political spectrum in Ukraine have been taking to social media to urge people to unite behind their president. James Vasina reports. .. read more..
Denmark to spend $7 billion more on defence in next two years
Wednesday, February 19,2025,22:39
The Danish government on Wednesday announced plans to bolster its military by setting up a 50 billion-kroner ($7 billion) fund that it says will raise the country's defense spending to more than 3% of gross domestic product this year and next. Neighbouring Sweden urged more European countries to significantly increase their defence budgets. FRANCE 24's August Hakansson reports. .. read more..
Andrew Tate capitalizing on rising fascist sentiment in his political aspirat...
Wednesday, February 19,2025,22:23
Four British women who have accused notorious influencer Andrew Tate of rape said Wednesday they were "concerned" by reports the Trump administration was petitioning Romania to ease his travel restrictions. FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney speaks to Dr Stephanie Wescott, lecturer at Monash University. She says that Tate is capitalizing on rising fascist sentiment in his political aspirations. .. read more..
Andrew Tate capitalizing on rising fascist sentiment in his political aspirat...
Wednesday, February 19,2025,22:02
Four British women who have accused notorious influencer Andrew Tate of rape said Wednesday they were "concerned" by reports the Trump administration was petitioning Romania to ease his travel restrictions. FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaffney speaks to Dr Stephanie Wescott, lecturer at Monash University. She says that Tate is capitalizing on rising fascist sentiment in his political aspirations. .. read more..
Why Europe’s leadership is skeptical of negotiating with Putin
Wednesday, February 19,2025,20:29
The idea that US President Donald Trump’s negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin will bring about lasting peace in Ukraine has been met with scepticism across Europe. FRANCE 24 spoke to political scientist Anton Shekhovstov about what the US can learn from earlier attempts to end Russian occupation across the former Soviet Union. .. read more..
Trump "is very interested in doing business with Russia": analyst
Wednesday, February 19,2025,20:18
President Zelensky said he will meet US envoy Kellogg on Thursday and that he hopes for "constructive" work with the US. The meeting comes as Trump used an extended social media post on his Truth Social platform to lash out at Zelensky and call the Ukrainian a “dictator without elections." Michael Benhamou, director of OPEWI, Europe's War Institute, says that Trump is aiming to open the Russian market to American companies, rather than support Ukraine and its allies. .. read more..
Swiss Market Ends Moderately Lower
Wednesday, February 19,2025,18:54
Save for a few minutes at the start, the Switzerland market languished in negative territory right through the day's session on Wednesday, as tariff concerns, geopolitical tensions and uncertainty about global growth outlook rendered the mood bearish. .. read more..
European Markets Close Notably Lower On Tariff Concerns, Hot UK Inflation Data
Wednesday, February 19,2025,18:33
European stocks closed lower on Wednesday as disappointing quarterly updates, U.S. President Donald Trump's fresh tariff threats, and hot inflation data from the U.K. weighed on sentiment. .. read more..
Andrey Kurkov: 'You can't write fiction when your houses, cities are shelled ...
Wednesday, February 19,2025,17:50
As we approach the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, FRANCE 24's Erin Ogunkeye welcomes celebrated Ukrainian novelist and author Andrey Kurkov to share his very powerful and personal perspective of a veritable proxy war, an unprovoked war of attrition as seen in from his war diaries 'Our Daily War'. "Every small detail of life is now very different from pre-war Ukraine, he explains. "We're all now different people: I've lost my feeling of value for material, my feeling that my house and my apartment don't belong to me anymore, they belong to the war." .. read more..
Baltic region prepares for war as Russia and US debate Ukraine's fate
Wednesday, February 19,2025,17:41
As Russia and the US debate Ukraine’s future, countries on the Baltic Sea are ramping up preparations for a military conflict amid fears that Russia is preparing for a future war with NATO. .. read more..
Zelensky accuses Trump of falling for Russian 'disinformation'
Wednesday, February 19,2025,14:36
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday accused Donald Trump of succumbing to Russian "disinformation" after the US president blamed Kyiv for having "started" the fighting in Ukraine. Trump also claimed Zelensky had a minimal approval rating in his country, despite polls showing otherwise. .. read more..
France's Senate backs bill to ban Muslim headscarf in sport competitions
Wednesday, February 19,2025,13:33
France's right-dominated Senate on Tuesday evening voted 210 to 81 to ban "the wearing of any sign or outfit ostensibly showing a political or religious affiliation" in competitions at regional and national levels as organised by French sports federations. The bill still needs a majority from the lower-house National Assembly to become law. .. read more..
'Navalny' film producer Odessa Rae remembers 'extraordinary' Russian oppositi...
Wednesday, February 19,2025,12:23
A year after the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the Oscar-winning documentary producer of the 2022 film "Navalny" has spoken to FRANCE 24 about her memories of him. Odessa Rae spent over three months living with the Russian dissident in Germany following his 2020 poisoning as she tracked his life to make the film. Navalny died just over a year ago in a penal colony in the Russian Arctic in circumstances that remain unclear. Speaking to us in Perspective, she called Navalny "one of the most extraordinary humans that I have ever met." .. read more..
FTSE 100 Down Marginally As Investors React To Results, Inflation Data
Wednesday, February 19,2025,11:04
U.K. stocks are slightly lower Wednesday morning, weighed down by data showing a bigger than expected increase in the nation's consumer price inflation. Fears of fresh tariffs by the U.S. weigh as well. .. read more..
CAC 40 Edging Lower In Cautious Trade
Wednesday, February 19,2025,10:00
French stocks are drifting lower Wednesday morning, shifting to reverse gear after successive days of gains. Fears of fresh tariffs by the U.S. after President Donald Trump spoke about the possibility of a 25% levy on imports of automobile, semiconductors and pharma products from April, weigh on sentiment. .. read more..
DAX Extends Recent Gains, Climbs To Fresh Record High
Wednesday, February 19,2025,09:30
German stocks edged higher to fresh record highs Wednesday morning, extending gains to a third straight session, with investors digesting the latest batch of earnings updates, and continuing to assess the likely impact of U.S. government's trade and economic policies. .. read more..
European Shares Mixed As UK Inflation Jumps More Than Expected
Wednesday, February 19,2025,09:03
European stocks were mixed on Wednesday after closing at a record high in the previous session. .. read more..
Live: Trump criticises Zelensky, suggests he could meet Putin by month’s end
Wednesday, February 19,2025,05:55
US President Donald Trump criticised Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday, blaming him for the Russian invasion and echoing Moscow’s demand for elections. Trump also expressed confidence that US-Russia talks would lead to a deal to end the war and hinted at a possible meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin before the end of the month. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments. .. read more..