U.S. President Donald Trump said he would impose a 200% tariff on French wines and champagnes after France declined to join his proposed Board of Peace on Gaza initiative.
Asked about French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision, Trump said, "Did he say that? Well, nobody wants him because he will be out of office very soon."
“I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and champagnes, and he’ll join, but he doesn’t have to join,” Trump added.
Donald Trump later published what he said was a private message from Emmanuel Macron on his social media platform, Truth Social.
The message, addressed to Trump and signed “Emmanuel,” said France and the U.S. were aligned on Syria and Iran, questioned U.S. actions on Greenland, and proposed a G7 meeting in Paris after Davos as well as a private dinner before Trump’s return to the U.S.
Macron's office cited concerns over the powers potentially extended to the Board and whether it would disrupt the work of the United Nations.
A statement, issued by the Elysée Palace, said the board's authority would go "beyond the framework of Gaza and raises serious questions, in particular with respect to the principles and structure of the United Nations, which cannot be called into question.”
France’s reluctance highlights growing unease among some European capitals about U.S.-led initiatives that they believe could sideline established international mechanisms, particularly the UN, in addressing the Gaza conflict and its aftermath.
The White House announced the formation of the Board of Peace on Friday (16 January), saying it would play a central role in implementing President Trump’s plan to permanently end the war in Gaza and oversee the reconstruction of the enclave. According to Washington, the board would provide strategic oversight, mobilise international resources and ensure accountability as Gaza moves from conflict toward recovery. Trump wants countries to pay $1 billion to gain permanent membership on the Board.
The U.S. administration also said it has set up a National Committee for the Administration of Gaza as part of phase two of Trump’s comprehensive plan, alongside an executive board structure intended to support governance and rebuilding efforts in the territory.
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The U.S., EU and their allies are racing to secure supplies of rare earth elements - essential materials for electric vehicles, wind turbines and advanced technologies - as China maintains a dominant position in processing.
Hungarians vote in elections on Sunday that could see the end of hard right nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s more than 15 year rule. Opinion polls show Orbán’s Fidesz party trailing 45-year-old Péter Magyar’s centre-right opposition Tisza party.
U.S. Vice-President JD Vance said that the U.S. and Iran were leaving peace talks in the Pakistani capital Islamabad without an agreement early on Sunday. The development came as negotiations between the two countries stretched into a second day.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators held their highest-level talks in half a century in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end their six-week war, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. military had begun the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz.
Hungarians vote in elections on Sunday that could see the end of hard right nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s more than 15 year rule. Opinion polls show Orbán’s Fidesz party trailing 45-year-old Péter Magyar’s centre-right opposition Tisza party.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators held their highest-level talks in half a century in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end their six-week war, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. military had begun the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz.
Amid fragile calm, António Guterres urged constructive U.S.- Iran talks, while Pope Leo XIV warned violence is spreading. Lebanon's President said an Israeli strike killed 13 security personnel in Nabatieh.
Dubai has restricted foreign airlines to one daily flight to its airports until 31 May due to the Iran crisis, raising fears of significant revenue losses for Indian carriers, industry letters show.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has told Taiwan opposition leader Cheng Li-wun that “people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are Chinese” and that the future of cross-strait ties should be decided by “the Chinese people themselves”.
The U.S., EU and their allies are racing to secure supplies of rare earth elements - essential materials for electric vehicles, wind turbines and advanced technologies - as China maintains a dominant position in processing.
Hungarians vote in elections on Sunday that could see the end of hard right nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s more than 15 year rule. Opinion polls show Orbán’s Fidesz party trailing 45-year-old Péter Magyar’s centre-right opposition Tisza party.
Britain’s plan to transfer the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which host a strategic U.K.-U.S. military base, has been put on indefinite hold after the Trump administration withdrew its support.
Ismail Omar Guelleh has been re-elected for a sixth term with 97.8% of the vote, according to state media, extending his nearly three-decade hold on power in the small but strategically significant East African nation.
Australia and Singapore have agreed to deepen cooperation on energy security as global fuel markets come under strain from disruption linked to the conflict in the Middle East.
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