Stellantis and China's Dongfeng signed a memorandum on May 20 to establish a European joint venture, with Stellantis holding 51% and Dongfeng 49%, under which Dongfeng's Voyah electric models will be built at the Rennes plant in western France. The deal lets Dongfeng skirt EU tariffs on Chinese EV imports and meets the bloc's 'Made in Europe' rule requiring 70% local content. Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa is due to lay out wider strategy at the company's investors' day in Michigan on Thursday.

France's interior minister vowed legal action after Viginum, the government's anti-disinformation agency, said an Israeli private company ran a disinformation campaign targeting pro-Palestinian candidates during March municipal elections. Deputy head Anne-Sophie Dhiver told lawmakers Wednesday the firm targeted candidates from hard-left party France Unbowed, though she said the operation had little traction and the sponsor remains unknown. The allegations follow similar accusations in Slovenia and come as France Unbowed lawmaker François Piquemal seeks to invalidate his runoff loss in Toulouse over the alleged interference.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez announced on May 20 that a legal action has been launched over suspected foreign digital interference targeting La France Insoumise (LFI) candidates during the 2026 municipal elections. French authorities suspect Israeli company BlackCore of enabling the operation, which included a fake website and false accusations against candidates such as François Piquemal in Toulouse and Sébastien Delogu in Marseille. No sponsors have been identified, and the operation may have been contracted from any country.

A French parliamentary report released Tuesday found that contaminated infant formula stayed on the market for a year, co-rapporteur Mathilde Hignet said Wednesday. The report cites failures by both the state and manufacturers, and follows revelations that Nestlé conducted silent recalls of products tainted with cereulide toxin between late November 2025 and early January 2026. Hignet accused Nestlé of not immediately alerting authorities and called for stricter controls on infant formula.

France attracted 852 foreign investment projects in 2025, maintaining its lead over the UK (730) and Germany (548) for the seventh consecutive year, according to EY's annual attractiveness barometer. However, the overall number of projects in Europe fell by 7%, making it the region with the sharpest global decline in international investment.

An analysis piece discusses the renewed debate on establishing a European nuclear deterrent, driven by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and doubts about US security guarantees. It examines France's 'forward deterrence' concept, the potential for a European nuclear triad, and the role of non-EU NATO members, particularly Turkey, which is currently excluded from emerging European-led deterrence initiatives despite its strategic location and military capabilities.

Background: France and Algeria have been working to repair relations after a diplomatic crisis, with French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin visiting Algiers in May 2026 to restart judicial cooperation. New development: French ambassador Stéphane Romatet returned to Algeria on May 8, 2026, after being recalled for over a year following the expulsion of 12 French diplomats by Algiers. He participated in commemorations of the 1945 Sétif massacres alongside French Minister Delegate for the Armed Forces Alice Rufo. His return follows a visit by Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez in mid-February and is part of a broader effort to restore bilateral ties. Key issues remain, including the detention of French national Christophe Gleizes, security cooperation, and immigration.

Background: Former French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin donated two Napoleon statuettes to the Quai d'Orsay after a TV investigation alleged they were gifts from lobbyist Robert Bourgi, paid for by former Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré and Italian businessman Gian Angelo Perrucci. The French National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) opened a preliminary inquiry into Villepin for suspected concealment of misappropriation of public funds concerning the statuettes and a bust allegedly offered to him between 2002 and 2004 by Bourgi, funded by Compaoré and Perrucci. Villepin returned the items to the Quai d'Orsay in late April and acknowledged it was an error to accept them, noting that accepting such gifts was not illegal at the time.