home > by publication type > podcasts > Belin: French Head of State Will Face Dual Challenges
Email
| Interviewer: | Andrew Hansen |
|---|
May 3, 2007
Célia Belin, CFR guest fellow and research associate at Le Centre Thucydide, discusses the recent presidential debate in France, the issues at stake, and French perceptions of the two candidates. “It’s a debate about personalities,” Belin says. During the debate, rightist candidate Nicolas Sarkozy wanted to show himself to be “calm and reasonable,” while Socialist Ségolène Royal looked to convince critics that she was “competent and could face up to the challenges” facing France, which include persistent unemployment and security issues involving France’s marginalized suburban population. “Both candidates describe themselves as pro-European,” Belin says, but Sarkozy does not favor expanding the European Union to include Turkey. The president-elect’s victory, she adds, is likely to spill over into the upcoming parliamentary elections, as French voters will want assurances that the new president has strong parliamentary support.
Weigh in on this issue by emailing CFR.org.
I understand that I may access this podcast solely for my personal use. Any other use of the file and its content, including display, distribution, reproduction, or alteration in any form for any purpose, whether commercial, noncommercial, educational, or promotional, is expressly prohibited without the written permission of the copyright owner, the Council on Foreign Relations. For more information, write webmaster@cfr.org.
To order Task Force reports, Council Special Reports, and Critical Policy Choices, please call, fax, or order online from our distributor, the Brookings Institution Press: phone +1.800.537.5487, fax +1.410.516.6998.
For information on other reports that are not for sale, or for general publications information, please call +1.212.434.9516 or email publications@cfr.org.
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
Copyright 2009 by the Council on Foreign Relations. All Rights Reserved.