Gabriel Attal, the former prime minister who formally entered the 2027 presidential race on May 22, said on Brut that the centrist bloc may need a primary to keep its vote from splitting and ceding the runoff to La France Insoumise and the National Rally. He has convened a liaison committee with Edouard Philippe's Horizons and Francois Bayrou's MoDem that has met once. Both Philippe and the Republicans rejected the idea, with Philippe saying there is "no place for this primary" given how wide the field is and how little the parties trust one another.

Andrius Kubilius, European commissioner for defense and space, said Moscow could produce 7 million to 9 million drones in 2026 and train up to 1.6 million operators by 2030. He urged Europe to treat drone production as a strategic priority for immediate aid to Ukraine, long-term defense of the EU's eastern flank, and industrial sovereignty. France has begun shifting its military planning toward drones, but Kubilius warned that current efforts remain fragmented and insufficient.

Airbus has signaled it is open to a 'two-fighter solution' that would allow France and Germany to develop separate combat aircraft under the €100 billion Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program, after years of disputes over nuclear requirements and industrial leadership. The proposal marks a major shift for a project launched in 2017 as a symbol of Franco-German military unity. Tensions are now spilling into a parallel Franco-German tank project, the Main Ground Combat System (MGCS).

France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Lithuania have jointly called on the European Commission to use tariffs and other defensive measures more aggressively to counter what they describe as abusive trade practices by major trading partners, implicitly targeting China. In a non-paper shared with the Commission on Friday, the five countries proposed more frequent safeguard investigations, a new “resilience tool,” and adding “economic security” as a criterion for opening trade defense probes. The push comes as Brussels prepares an internal strategy debate on the competitive threat from China next Friday.

The national science academies of G7 countries issued a joint statement warning that Arctic summer sea ice has shrunk by half since the 1970s, with cascading effects on global climate including sea-level rise, extreme weather, and feedback loops. The statement, presented ahead of the G7 summit in France, recommends immediate emission reductions, limiting polluting activities in the Arctic, expanding data collection, and integrating indigenous knowledge. Scientists highlighted risks to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and increased frequency of cold waves in North America and Europe. The report underscores the Arctic's outsized role in climate regulation and the urgency of coordinated action.

France recorded record high temperatures for May over the weekend, with Paris reaching 31.9°C. Meteo France issued its first yellow heatwave alert in May since the alert system began in 2004. A runner died during a 10km race in Paris, and ten others were hospitalized in critical condition. The heatwave affected multiple regions, including Brittany, and scientists link such events to global warming.

French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has proposed a three-year moratorium on legal immigration, arguing that France has reached the limits of its integration capacity. In an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche, he advocated ending family reunification for work-based residence permits and reforming the constitution to establish binding immigration quotas. The proposal is widely seen as a political maneuver ahead of the 2027 presidential election, positioning Darmanin within the conservative electorate.

Sophie Binet, general secretary of France's largest trade union CGT, has been placed under formal investigation for defamation for the second time in six months, following a complaint by cookware manufacturer Tefal over comments she made about union repression at the company linked to PFAS 'forever chemicals'. Binet warns that trade union freedoms are in danger and calls on MPs and the government to introduce a law protecting freedom of expression and union rights.