By Alexandra Sharp
Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at France’s next prime minister, the world’s first AI treaty, and new Chinese funding in Africa.
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The Barnier Dilemma
Newly appointed French Prime Minister Michel Barnier looks on during the handover ceremony at the Hôtel Matignon in Paris on Sept. 5.Sarah Meyssonnier/AFP via Getty Images
French President Emmanuel Macron tapped former chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier to be France’s prime minister on Thursday, ending more than 50 days of a caretaker government. At 73 years old, the conservative Les Républicains lawmaker, four-time cabinet minister, and two-time European commissioner will be the oldest prime minister in modern French history.
Barnier must first form a government that won’t immediately collapse after July’s snap elections resulted in a hung parliament. Macron’s Renaissance party and Barnier’s Les Républicains, along with their allies, hold 213 parliamentary seats, below the 289 needed for an outright majority.
The left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) coalition, which won the most seats in July, vowed to oppose Barnier, saying the ruling administration must choose a prime minister from the left-wing coalition to best represent its recent electoral gains. This leaves Macron reliant on the far-right National Rally party to garner enough support for his pick.
The National Rally is the largest single party in France’s National Assembly, but relying on it to put Barnier in office could make far-right icon Marine Le Pen and her divisive party into kingmakers for future French governments. National Rally leader Jordan Bardella said the party would not block Barnier’s appointment—but warned that if Barnier does not address the National Rally’s demands, including “cost of living, security, immigration,” then it would torpedo his government.
Macron had faced heavy pressure to select outgoing Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s successor ahead of next month’s deadline to submit the 2025 national budget and before the French return to work on Monday from summer break. Failure to determine a budget could trigger a no-confidence vote against Macron’s government.
Still, Macron repeatedly rejected the NFP’s suggested candidates. He appeared to want a right-wing prime minister who would protect his controversial pension reforms, which the left threatened to undo if it came to power. Arguments reached a climax last week when Macron refused to appoint 37-year-old economist Lucie Castets on the grounds that she would not survive a vote of confidence.
The NFP has since denounced Macron’s actions. “The election was stolen from the French people,” left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon said on Thursday. Left-wing lawmaker Mathilde Panot called Barnier’s appointment an “unacceptable democratic coup.”
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Today’s Most Read
What We’re Following
A global AI framework. The United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and Israel signed the first international artificial intelligence treaty on Thursday. The agreement requires states to implement safeguards against AI threats, such as AI-generated misinformation and systems trained on discriminatory or biased data, that could violate human rights or the rule of law.
“This convention is a major step to ensuring that these new technologies can be harnessed without eroding our oldest values,” British Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said. Fifty-seven countries took part in the yearslong talks, which were adopted in May under the Council of Europe’s direction.
The treaty is the first global, legally binding framework of its kind, though some experts have criticized it for measuring compliance primarily via monitoring rather than sanctions such as fines. The treaty is separate from the EU AI Act—which entered into force last month—as well as the G-7 code of conduct agreed to last October and the Bletchley Declaration signed in November.
Opening Beijing’s purse strings. Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged on Thursday to increase China’s funding for projects in Africa by nearly $51 billion over the next three years. Around $30 billion would be given through credit lines and another roughly $10 billion provided via fresh investments. Xi also vowed to create at least 1 million jobs, kick-start three times as many infrastructure projects, and boost military and food aid by $140 million each.
“China and Africa account for one-third of the world population. Without our modernization, there will be no global modernization,” Xi said during the second day of the Beijing-hosted Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. Officials from more than 50 African countries attended, many of whom praised Beijing’s “solidarity” with the continent. China is Africa’s largest trading partner and creditor.
Gang violence spreads in Haiti. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Haiti on Thursday, just one day after local authorities expanded the nation’s state of emergency to the whole country. Blinken is expected to meet with acting Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille to discuss ongoing steps to hold national elections and joint efforts with a Kenyan-led security force to curb gang violence. Washington is the security mission’s largest funder.
In recent years, armed gangs seized control of much of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, threatening the country’s rule of law and fomenting a humanitarian crisis. Nearly 580,000 Haitians have been displaced, and around 5 million people face severe hunger. On Monday, protesters stormed and vandalized a power plant, leaving more than 1 million people in Port-au-Prince without electricity.
“The situation is the worst I’ve seen in my entire lifetime,” Conille told the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, reiterating calls for more foreign support. “This is really urban warfare at its worst. It’s a few thousand people holding 12 million people hostage.”
Odds and Ends
When online dating apps bear fruitless results, single Spaniards are trying a new approach. A trend has emerged across Spain, in which young people visit Mercadona supermarkets to find potential matches. Those looking for love are going shopping at 7 p.m. and placing exotic fruit in their carts to show their eligibility.
“If you find someone you like, and they happen to have their pineapple, you can start to talk,” a 24-year-old living in Barcelona said.
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