Le Pen appears to the one coming out of the situation in a stronger position, Rouban said. Macron is to meet Tuesday at the presidential palace with the mayors of over 220 towns and cities that have been concerned by incidents and damages in recent days.

Macron then travelled to Marseille last week to promote government efforts to inject billions into schools, housing and security and improve lives of residents of low-income neighborhoods in France’s second largest city.

Last month, Macron hosted the global summit on climate and finance that brought over 50 heads of state and government and leaders of international organizations in the French capital, highlighting his international leadership. Macron “doesn’t have much leeway except for distributing subsidies,” which is also difficult because of France’s heavy debt burden, Rouban said. Schools, city halls, police stations and other public institutions have been attacked. He noted that Macron has faced a succession of protests and street unrest, starting with the yellow vest movement against social injustice that broke out in 2018.Īn increasing proportion of the population “rejects institutions” as part of a broader criticism of “a social order that involves inequalities, that is … basically quite hypocritical, with school in particular not allowing people to succeed as it once did,” Rouban said. “The problem is that he still has four more years ahead,” said Luc Rouban, a senior researcher at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS). The question now for Macron is whether he can marshal enough endurance to face the political situation at home. “You have run this like Kenyans do … like a marathon,” he told Macron. Last month, after a climate summit, Kenya’s president William Ruto praised Macron’s deep involvement. The U.S., the UK and China were among those that called on citizens to exercise caution when travelling to France. “I don’t expect France to become unstable, even if the pictures are of course very depressing.” “I hope very much, and I am convinced, that the French president will find ways for this situation to improve quickly,” he told ARD television. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was watching France’s situation with concern. The changes in his agenda echo another uncomfortable situation for the French leader three months ago, when the planned state visit of King Charles III to France was postponed due to violent protests against the pension changes.

This week, he called a last-minute delay in a visit to Germany that had been meant to show the strength of the bilateral friendship despite disputes on energy, defense and the economy, among other issues. Macron shortened a visit to a European summit in Brussels last week for a crisis meeting with his government.

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