Media Interventions

The distance between Dover, England, and Calais, France, is only 30 miles. For migrants and refugees trying to cross from France to Britain through a tunnel underneath the English Channel, however, that short distance represents a dangerous journey and a risk of deportation, grave injury and even death.

In this interview, Claude Meyer underlines the three major vulnerabilities of the Chinese economy, and describes the investments China has made since the early 2000’s to address them.

The interview is available in French

Without real and profound change in Greece's dysfunctional state, it is almost irrelevant whether the country reaches a short-term deal with its creditors or not, say analysts. "Greece cannot perform economically well in the long-term without major structural reforms. These need to address the size and quality of public administration and the fight against corruption," says Vivien Pertusot, of the French Institute of International Relations, a Brussels think tank.

Ideally, the impetus for reform needs to come from inside Greece, says Pertusot. "It's one thing to impose these reforms on yourself, quite another to have them imposed from outside, which makes it difficult for a government to own the reforms. It is possible to prioritise improving the quality of public administration, and decreasing its size, but it will take years to see concrete progress."

Long-entrenched vested interests will likely prove an obstacle to change, says Pertusot, and government will still need to function while reforms are enacted. "To revamp an entire system without smashing it is a complicated and delicate task. It requires the right leaders at the right time, willing and able to fight against an established system."

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This first episode of the Building Bridges Conversation Series is part of the "Building Bridges" project, which aims to foster debate on the future of the European Union and offer top quality analyses on how each member state perceives the EU. In this video, Vivien Pertusot, coordinator of the project discusses with Ana Benje from Comenius University (Slovakia) and Nathan Dufour from PISM (Poland).

Apparue en même temps que le miracle économique, la population des couches moyennes incarne un pays en pleine mutation : confort matériel, meilleure éducation, ouverture sur le monde... mais aussi rupture avec les valeurs traditionnelles.

Trade is the focus of a three-day visit to France that Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang started on Tuesday. Beyond deals with French companies, China and France are expected to sign an agreement on joint infrastructure projects in Asia and Africa.

Cet été marque le 70ème anniversaire de la fin de la deuxième guerre mondiale avec le largage des bombes atomiques sur Hiroshima et Nagasaki en Août 1945. Alors que les relations entre la Chine et la Corée du Sud sont au beau fixe, Pékin et Séoul entretiennent des rapports tendus avec Tokyo.

Le régime de Pyongyang réclame de l'aide, mais les observateurs internationaux s'interrogent sur l'ampleur du phénomène.

Michel de Grandi présente les conclusions de l'étude d'Alice Ekman sur les classes moyennes chinoises.

Où en est la campagne américaine ? on France Culture, with Christine Okrent

• Le 8 juin, lors du G7 en Bavière, Barack Obama invitait ses partenaires européens à trouver un accord rapide pour résoudre la crise grecque. 
• Mercredi, c'est le secrétaire d'État au Trésor, Jack Lew, qui s'est inquiété des « chocs extérieurs » qu'entraînerait un échec. 
• Hier, les États-Unis ont dépêché un membre du département d'État à Athènes en pleine négociation avec ses créanciers.

Donald Trump, American presidential candidate: Where is the campaign? with Laurence Nardon, head of the United States program at the French Institute for Intenational Relations (IFRI).

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