• Coverage, analysis, photo and video coverage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup from Brazil

  • Check out the photos from the Group E matchup between France and Honduras at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil

  • The outcome of the French municipal elections contributed to the general European unease about the future of the European Union. In May EU Parliament elections will take place in the troubled circumstances of economic crisis everywhere but Germany

  • The long shadow cast by France on its former colonies in North Africa is the subject of "The French Intifada." The book examines France's engagement with Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco, a story of 200 years of invasions and immigration across the Mediterranean

  • The Hollande-Trierweiler passage in the rich history of French scandals has ended badly for both, contributing to morbid forces of disunion at work in contemporary French society

  • The most disappointing thing about the news that French President Francois Hollande allegedly has been rendezvousing with an actress is that it's a testament to how pathetic some segments of French society are allowing public discourse to become

  • Not only was the intercept of European states' communications cause for outrage, but these countries' diplomatic premises in Washington, the United Nations and elsewhere being penetrated and bugged, as well as those of the European Union

  • European governments have been expressing faux outrage over American intelligence activities in the wake of the documents released by Edward Snowden indicating that the United States bugged European reps in Washington, D.C.

  • Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel says that the answer to Europe Union's problems is more political integration. But, one is left asking what closer political union can bring to the EU without a full transfer of national sovereignties to European institutions

  • Rafael Nadal of Spain etched his name in the history books, becoming the first man to win the same major tournament eight times after beating countryman David Ferrer, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3, in the French Open final

  • The European Union has voiced concern about low fertility as a major demographic challenge. If it stays at these low levels, the population quickly moves from growth to decline, which is already happening in Germany, despite immigration

  • When the proposal was initially made for a common European currency, it seemed to be a good idea. Although inexpert in economics, it struck me as an effect of a false analogy with the United States that was common in Europe at that time

  • It is not simply the euro zone that is threatened by the dramatic economic discrepancies that now exist among its members. Now it is the European Union itself that is in danger, mainly but not entirely because of the economic crisis inherited from Wall Street abuses

  • World No. 1 Serena Williams asserted her mastery over Maria Sharapova, beating the No. 2 seed, 6-4, 6-4, to win her second French Open and 16th Grand Slam overall

  • While Europe as a whole is suffering from the economic crisis, the Muslim population has been hit particularly hard. This, in addition to the frequent discrimination against Muslims, leaves many Muslims feeling alienated, disenfranchised and resentful

  • The global financial crisis has slowly yielded to a global unemployment crisis. This unemployment crisis will give way to a political crisis. The crisis involves all three of the major pillars of the global system -- Europe, China and the United States

  • Elections in Greece and France may be further dividing the Continent

  • Nice is much more than the beach and the sea. With its fine palette of museums, good food, and ramble-worthy old town, Nice is the enjoyable big-city highlight of any French Riviera visit

  • If the eurozone splinters, it will have been an avoidable disaster. The choice lies with Germany, which can save the monetary union if it allows for policies aimed at debt relief and growth, not just slashing deficits

  • Throughout the Euro crisis, the Euro elite has suffered from the same inability to imagine failure that led to August 1914. Even days before the outbreak of war, it was thought impossible because the consequences would end the system

  • Wayne Rooney played hero for England, scoring the game-winning goal to defeat co-host Ukraine, 1-0, in Group D. France lost to Sweden, 2-0, but still advanced to the final eight

  • England and France battled to a 1-1 tie to start their campaign in the European Championship 2012 Group D

  • New political leaders do not invent new national strategies. Rather, they adapt enduring national strategies to the moment. And for France, the underlying issue remains constant: France's struggle for a dominant role in Europe at a time of German ascendance

  • Travelers to France find a rich and constantly changing palette of cultural and historic sights. Here's a review of what's new or different in la belle France for 2013

  • Soccer superstar David Beckham inked a five-month deal with Paris St-Germain with his compensation going to charity. Beckham was most recently a member of the MLS champion Los Angeles Galaxy

  • Like ghosts from the past, we see political violence, xenophobia, migrants being scapegoated and extreme nationalism creeping into our public debates -- even into our parliaments. This is a Europe diverging from its founding principles

  • French public reaction to American CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus' suicide-bombing of his own career demonstrates a lack of understanding of the perceived offense in favor of a blind defense of libertinism

  • Alsace is France with a German accent. Its unique mix of cultures offers enchanting cobbled villages, scenic vineyards, gourmet cuisine and art that is as vibrant as the medieval day it was painted

  • France booked a place in the quarterfinal round of Olympic women's basketball after beating Canada, 64-60, for its third win in as many games

  • Nearly every step towards total union has revealed still more of the inherent factors of disunity in Europe and has dramatized how distant 'Europe' has become from the simple and lucid ambitions of its origins

  • The best France can hope for now is that the newly elected Francois Hollande takes a plunge into a pothole of pragmatism and douses any budding socialist ideas

  • The defeat of French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the French elections provides a clear lesson

  • The elections in France and Greece seem widely to have been taken, at least on the European and American left, as a solution to the great European economic crisis

  • All over Europe, the gospel is that tight-fisted Germans are at the root of the European Union meltdown: They worked too hard, saved too much, bought too little and borrowed not at all

  • You can learn a lot about Europe's current economic crises by just ignoring the sophisticated barrage of news analysis and instead watching, listening, and talking to people

  • A French-Lebanese businessman claims that former French president Nicolas Sarkozy received more than $65 million in campaign donations from former Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi in 2006

  • The stage is set for the 2012 Euro Cup following Friday's draw that saw host Poland and Ukraine getting the top draws while Spain placed in a tougher group. Poland was drawn in Group A along with Greece, Russia, and Czech Republic

  • Everyone is wondering about the next disaster to befall Europe. Italy is one focus; Spain is also a possibility. But these crises are already under way. Instead, the next crisis will be political, not in the sense of what conventional politician is going to become prime minister, but in the deeper sense of whether Europe's political elite can retain power

  • For most people, the knee-jerk reaction to an event on the other side of the world is, 'Why should I give a toss what happens in France?' While such foreign-policy prowess might be a hit at the local pub, would it really be smart to ignore an election that will impact everything in your life for which you pay or require borrowed money? Bear with me as I explain

  • The crisis won't be over until the underlying flaw of the euro is fixed -- namely the separation of monetary and fiscal policy. German public opinion has to realise that the euro was built on imperfect foundations and that these imperfections must be corrected. Meanwhile, the Italian president of the ECB will need all his technical and political expertise to keep the Eurozone together

  • It was short-term good news in that it defused 'the bomb' -- the possible catastrophe vortex of failing banks and defaulting sovereigns. The bad news is that it will induce a recession. Banks will create a credit crunch in trying to meet capital adequacy ratios, and the new austerity will create a fiscal contraction

  • European Union leaders have brokered a deal to reduce Greece's debt and hopefully stem the continent's lingering debt crisis. The deal is a major move forward, but it is still only one step in restoring stability on a continent beset by economic woes

  • In France, an Islamic terrorist has likely hijacked the agenda for the remainder of the French presidential race

  • What had seemed a long, tranquil current of political success that was conveying Francois Hollande to the French presidency has run into turbulence

  • French President Nicolas Sarkozy was elected by promising to modernize France's societal infrastructure and bring it more into line with America's. But then something got in the way: France

  • Europe's new fiscal compact treaty attempts to force regional reform without challenging sovereignty

  • Vaux-le-Vicomte is one of several sumptuous palaces studding the region around Paris. The most famous of these is Versailles. But several other chateaux also make for worthy day trips

  • While Europe panicked about Greece, Italy drew closer to the brink of economic ruin. No one was paying attention while Rome was burning. Until recently

  • With no end in sight for the two-year-old euro crisis, the question now is can the EU survive it while remaining united?

  • What made Europe a compelling political, economic, and social alternative wedged between Anglo-American free marketeers and Soviet nomenklatura is rapidly becoming a thing of the past

  • The current European Union is under threat no longer just from the debt contagion caused by weaker members, but also by plans of more prosperous members to form a breakaway group

  • EU leaders announced a new plan to contain the debt crisis in the euro area, after private banks and investors agreed to write off 50% of Greek debt from their books

  • Conventional wisdom has it that the eurozone cannot have a monetary union without also having a fiscal union. Euro-enthusiasts see the single currency as the first steppingstone toward a broader economic union, which is their dream. Euroskeptics do, too, but they see that endgame as hell -- and would prefer the single currency to be dismantled

  • Moody's Investors Service warned France that it may lose its top AAA credit rating because of French support for the bailout fund and the country's weakened finances

  • The French Socialist Party nominated Francois Hollande as their candidate for the 2012 presidential election. He is expected to battle incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy

  • Peter Zeihan discusses the collapse of the Franco-Belgian bank Dexia and examines its effects on the European debt crisis

  • Manufacturing in the 17-nation eurozone slowed down in August, marking the first time since September 2009 that the manufacturing sector contracted, according to a survey by Markit.

  • Among their other headaches, some of Europe's biggest leaders are troubled by the lukewarm state of their countries' melting pots. A combination of economic recession, terrorism fears and electoral politics has made scapegoats out of immigrants and government multiculturalism policies

  • France is peppered with wineries and wine-tasting opportunities. For some people, it can be overwhelming to try to make sense of the vast range of French wines, particularly when faced with a no-nonsense winemaker or sommelier. I'm no wine expert and would never claim to be, but I've learned a lot

  • The European Union's leaders, Germany and France, decided to try to change the EU's Lisbon Treaty. This is a highly charged and divisive move. While the Germans and French want important changes, a large number of the other 25 members do not

  • World War I, the 'war to end all wars,' ended on Nov. 11, 1918. The battlefields of Verdun in France provide a poignant tribute to the 800,000 casualties suffered here during the horrific war, which raged from 1914 to 1918. Verdun is in northeastern France, not far from the Champagne region, in a strategic location between Paris and the German border

  • My take is that the decision to stay outside of a city center rests on how you might answer several main questions

  • In early April French and UN helicopters bombarded the presidential residence in Abidjan. This military operation sealed the fate of incumbent Laurent Gbagbo, paving the way for Alassane Ouattara to claim office. But the French and UN action had another effect: it triggered outrage about international interference -- in particular on the part of France -- in African affairs

  • It is important to understand that the crisis is not fundamentally about Greece. After all, Greece represents only 2.5 percent of the eurozone's GDP, and the bloc's fiscal numbers are not that bad when looked at in the aggregate. The real crisis is the more fundamental question of how the European continent is to be ruled in the 21st century

  • This June marks the 67th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of Normandy, and the beginning of the end of World War II. The Normandy sites are spread along 75 miles of coastline

  • The plethora of unwanted strikes and student and youth unrest in Western Europe is a morbid condition. It is not pension claims that are driving the current political uproar. It is popular fury at the people who created the present economic crisis and have been rewarded, with everyone else left to face the consequences

  • The Peninsula Hotels makes its grand entrance into Europe with The Peninsula Paris, setting spectacular new standards in design, luxury and comfort. The century-old classic building has been meticulously restored and modernised

  • Past debates on the EU's possible emergence as a superpower have usually focused on its influence abroad. However, the EU's ability to project power and influence will also shape its internal future -- by either proving its utility to member states or not

  • European Parliament elections are expected to bring about a new all-time record turnout in support for right-wing, anti-immigrant, and anti-EU fringe parties. In many European countries, extremist parties have been on the rise

  • Real Madrid has named Paris Saint-Germain manager Carlo Ancelotti as its new skipper, replacing Jose Mourinho. Paris Saint-Germain immediately found a replacement for Ancelotti

  • Former French Budget Minister Jerome Cahuzac, who left his Socialist government post earlier this year amid allegations of a secret Swiss bank account, now faces a formal investigation for allegedly laundering the proceeds of tax evasion

  • It would indeed be nice if there were no wars anywhere on Earth. It would also be great to own five BMWs and three private islands. Both are equally unlikely scenarios, yet only the first is accepted as plausible by the perpetually deluded

  • Military interventions by powerful nations into lesser ones, such as now continues in Mali (and Afghanistan), and is being urged by many into the Syrian civil war, are inherently reckless since even the most powerful states can have the whole project blow up on them

  • Socialist French President Francois Hollande is in the pilot's seat in the world's latest military incursion. We're not used to seeing the French lead the way into battle, but it's becoming increasingly frequent

  • After mounting a military operation to help Mali crush Islamist extremists, some observers say the Mali intervention symbolizes a changed French relationship with Africa -- and the presidency of French leader Francois Hollande

  • One longs for the heyday of ancient Timbuktu. Unfortunately, the broad region of West Africa that includes present-day Mali has had its share of geopolitical turmoil since at least the eighth century

  • France has a double crisis. Its ruling political party, Francois Hollande's Socialist, is in a state of catatonia, usually defined as a condition of incoherence with alternate periods of stupor and activity

  • The euro crisis is now threatening to turn the European Union into something fundamentally different. The member countries are divided into two classes -- creditors and debtors -- with the creditors in charge

  • The European Union is at risk of being destroyed by the euro. The credit crisis has created divisions in Europe which are undermining what was supposed to be mutual confidence and solidarity

  • French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which has long faced Muslim ire over publishing holy Prophet Mohammed's cartoons in the past, disclosed its plans to release an educational comic book biography

  • The people of France have spoken on the subject of the U.S. presidential election. Naturally, you couldn't care less about what anyone else (let alone the French) thinks about you or your electoral choices, right?

  • Sunny, out-of-the-way Languedoc is an intoxicating part of the world. Stretching from the Mediterranean to the Pyrenees in southwest France, it shares a balmy climate, winter wind, grapevines, and the sea with Provence

  • Substitute forward Olivier Giroud buried a goal in extra time to carry France to a 1-1 draw over defending champion Spain in a qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup

  • The Nobel Committee recently awarded its prestigious top prize to 500 million people who have, for the last 65 years, made a conscious decision to live together in peace and harmony: the European Union

  • Seventeen economically disparate nations bound their fortunes together in creating the euro zone, and it is exactly this that has thrown the European project into crisis

  • Voters in France and Greece proved that they're willing to cycle through governments over and over until someone fixes their predicament. They want Santa Claus, as if they were 5 years old again

  • Economists continue inveighing against austerity strategies. But none of them seem capable of explaining in plain, simple language why imposing austerity now is utterly foolhardy -- in fact, just plain stupid

  • It's time Europe stopped viewing immigrants as a threat to society

  • Socialist Francois Hollande edged ahead of incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in a runoff election Sunday to claim the French presidency

  • French President Nicholas Sarkozy is alleged to have maintained backdoor ties to the Libyan government from 2005 to 2011

  • It's a strategy sometimes seen in politics and in the case of the upcoming French elections, it may well be the winning strategy that determines the country's next president

  • Are the French getting their Tea Party on? That's what an outsider looking at the country's first-round presidential voting results might have been led to believe

  • The French elections have settled one question, that of the two finalists for the presidency

  • Government bureaucracies do not deal well with ambiguity, and terrorists tend to be very ambiguous

  • Over the past two years, the eurozone members have done a remarkable job managing the short-term symptoms of the crisis, although the costs have been great. Yet the long-term challenge remains

  • Thirty-one years ago Francis Mitterrand became the only left-wing president of France's Fifth Republic, and set off on the path of Socialism in one country, with dramatic consequences. The parallels are evident

  • Even before the financial sector and sovereign debt crisis began to destabilise Europe's banking system, European leaders were voicing fears that the Old World might be slipping towards global irrelevance

  • The euro should now be recognized as an experiment that failed. The political goal of creating a harmonious Europe has also failed

  • Moody's is downgrading the credit rating of all three of France's top banks because of the difficulty they have borrowing money

  • The plans all are financial solutions to a particular set of financial problems. But regardless of whether they are realistic in addressing the financial problem, the question of whether the financial issue really addresses the fundamental dilemma of Europe -- which is political and geopolitical -- remains

  • My favorite corner of France is Burgundy, a region overflowing with edible, drinkable, scenic, and floatable delights

  • In France's presidential election the incumbent is running far behind his challenger in a contest that has more to do with personal character than issue

  • Socialism and its accompanying economic devastation thrive on complexity and red tape. If something is so simple that anyone can figure it out, then a socialist is being deprived of a livelihood. That's the dragon Europe is now stuck having to slay

  • Once again, socialism has put a silver fork in itself. Standard & Poor's downgraded France's credit rating, giving the country the side-eye on its claims to have its debt under control

  • While their economies may be undergoing turbulence in 2012, positive changes in France and Spain are also in the air -- making this year a good time to touch down in these essential European destinations

  • 2012 could be the make-or-break moment for the embattled eurozone. Europe could either continue on the path of ever-greater integration - or return to being a regional group of rival states.

  • Fresh from battle experience over Libya, a French Rafale jet is heading to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to strut its stuff amid a heavy pitch to finally clinch a deal for the first foreign sale of the fighter aircraft

  • France, like all of Europe, is caught in an economic tsunami, and France is teetering at the edge of the precipice. Every week, it seems, presidents and prime ministers hold urgent meetings searching for a solution, culminating with the G-20 convocation recently. Still, the problem grows only worse

  • We may be looking at the possibility of a worldwide financial meltdown

  • Only the United States seems to have an affinity for protecting tiny, vulnerable countries. Israelis, anti-communist Chinese, Kurds, Greeks and Armenians have a few things in common. They have relatively small populations, aggressive neighbors, few strong allies, many expatriates and refugees in the United States, and a tragic history of persecution and genocide

  • If you want the real reason for concern in the United States about what's happening in Europe, follow the money. A Greek (or Irish or Spanish or Italian or Portuguese) default would have roughly the same effect on our financial system as the implosion of Lehman Brothers in 2008. That is, financial chaos

  • The European Union is presently a source of great instability that leaders have yet to tackle. This column argues the current policy response is misguided. The adjustment programmes are bound to fail to achieve sustainable budget deficits, and may result in an unprecedented destruction of economic activity

  • Time is running out for EU leaders to put an end to the Eurozone crisis. This column explains how leaders could find a definitive solution to Greece insolvency, isolate solvent countries from possible Greek contagion, improve EU governance by creating a true European parliament, and refocus on a pro-growth policy mix

  • Repressive regimes of the Middle East and North Africa had all the equipment they needed to quash Arab Spring protests, thanks to arms exporters

  • Europe faces a banking crisis it has not wanted to admit even exists

  • Certain artists are so identified with particular places that it's hard to pry them apart. France, with its shimmering light and gorgeous scenery, has more than its share of these pairings. It's enjoyable to see the artists' masterpieces in museums, but you can get a better sense of what inspired them by visiting the places where they worked

  • Europe was seen as a work in progress moving inevitably toward unification -- a group of nations committed to a common fate. What was a core vision in 2008 is now gone. What was inconceivable -- the primacy of the traditional nation-state -- is now commonly discussed, and steps to devolve Europe in part or in whole are being contemplated. This is not a trivial event

  • French Prime Minister Francois Fillion announced tax hikes to reduce the country's budget deficit by $.17.3 billion (EUR 12 billion) over the next two years

  • A new round of second-quarter GDP figures shows slowing growth in the EU, which makes for a complicated economic situation, as reduced government spending can further stifle growth. Some economists say that, in tackling this dilemma, European governments are focusing too closely on their balance sheets and neglecting to propose real growth policies

  • The trilateral summit between French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev made some gains in drawing Russia closer to NATO. However, many Russians, including Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, are skeptical of the West's intentions and many new NATO members from the former Soviet bloc are uncomfortable about closer ties with Russia

  • Of all of the sources of strategic delusion and political illusion today, nuclear weapons undoubtedly make the most prodigious contribution to hypocrisy and useless expense

  • This week has seen the annual ritual by which the Left in France marks summer's end and the resumption of politics as usual. This ritual is a general strike called by the Left, whenever a rightist government is in power.

  • Muliculturalism has failed. So said Chancellor Angela Merkel in a speech in Potsdam last October. David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy both echoed her opinion early this year. But it is not easy to know just what they meant. The term is open to so many interpretations and used in so many different ways. Is it an ideology, a set of policies, or a social reality?

  • What can only seem the irresistible self-destruction of Dominique Strauss-Kahn has already produced fundamental and irreversible consequences in French party-political affairs, in the presidential campaign that next spring will give France a new president or confirm the succession of the present one

  • The European Union is in danger of compounding its ongoing economic crisis with a political crisis of its own making. Over the last year, crises of confidence have hit the 17 EU members that in the years since 1998 have given up their own currencies to adopt the euro. Markets behaved as though the debt of peripheral EU countries was as safe as that of core EU countries

  • Events surrounding the military intervention in Libya these last two weeks, and what already has happened in Tunisia, Egypt and Bahrain, and what continues elsewhere in the region, have produced two unplanned but important results.

  • My transoceanic lyricism goes flat when I hear about things like France's preposterous plan to fine Muslim women for wearing a full-face veil in public. In our globalized age, there is no shortage of hostility on the part of native populations for the immigrants among them. What explains this law is a familiar pattern of cultural politics akin to what psychologists call displacement

  • The dramatic European Union funding proposal is an important first step. Next comes enforcement of tough fiscal reform guidelines, which introduces a series of new political challenges and risks.

  • Nicolas Sarkozy of France is not a man noted for charm but for his unchecked energies and the restless activity. Italy's Silvio Berlusconi is another matter entirely. He is a success in politics apparently because the majority of Italians like him. Indeed, sometimes pays to be a nondescript politician like Gordon Brown of Britain.