France in January 2026: the most important developments in politics
In France in January 2026, the dominant political story was the open dispute between President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump over Greenland. France declined Trump's invitation to join a Gaza peace initiative, and on 20 January Trump threatened 200% tariffs on French wines. The same day the two clashed publicly over Greenland and G7 plans: Trump shared private text messages in which Macron questioned the Greenland idea, and announced he would not attend a proposed G7 meeting in Paris. At Davos on 21 January Trump mocked Macron's sunglasses and revived the idea of the United States buying Greenland. France formally asked for a NATO exercise in Greenland and planned to open a consulate there on 6 February. By 22 January Macron was welcoming an easing of transatlantic tensions, and on 28 January, meeting Danish and Greenlandic leaders in Paris, he called the dispute a strategic wake-up call for Europe and affirmed support for their sovereignty. A remark by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that Europe cannot defend itself without the United States drew public disagreement from France.
On Ukraine, allies of the Coalition of the Willing met in Paris on 6 January with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attending. France and the United Kingdom committed to deploying troops under a proposed peace deal, and Macron said he intended to speak to Vladimir Putin as soon as possible. Ukrainian and US negotiating teams met in Paris the following day. France also said it did not approve of the US method of overthrowing Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro. Together with the UK and Germany, it condemned the killing of protesters in Iran.
At home, Marine Le Pen's appeal trial began on 13 January over the employment of parliamentary assistants for her National Rally party; the outcome will decide whether she can run in the 2027 presidential election. The government survived no-confidence votes over the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. The National Assembly passed the 2026 defense budget on 27 January, and on 30 January the government used a special constitutional power to force a final vote on the 2026 budget through the Assembly.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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