Niger
Embassy closure (Jan. 2, 2024)

The Embassy of France in Niger is now closed until further notice. For the past five months, our Embassy has been subjected to major obstacles that have made it impossible to do its job: a blockade around the Embassy, restrictions on employee movements, and the turning away of all diplomatic personnel who were supposed to arrive in Niger, in clear violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

The Embassy will continue operating from Paris. It will maintain ties with French nationals in Niger and with the NGOs that work in the humanitarian sector and which we continue to fund, directly benefiting the most country’s vulnerable people. Consular activities will be carried out by our consulates in the region.

Ukraine
Condemnation of massive new Russian strikes (Jan. 2, 2024)

France utterly condemns the massive wave of Russian missile and drone strikes against Ukraine that left at least 4 dead and 92 injured in the city and region of Kyiv and in the city of Kharkiv.

In launching nearly 100 missiles and dozens of drones across Ukraine four days after a strike of unprecedented dimensions that resulted in at least 39 casualties, Russia is continuing its strategy of terror aimed at destroying Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, in order to weaken the resilience of the Ukrainian people during the second winter of the conflict. Russia alone bears responsibility for this escalation, which has no justification whatsoever and which primarily affects civilians.

As Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna has repeatedly emphasized, France will continue to work closely with its partners to bolster Ukrainian resilience and to provide Ukraine with the aid it needs to ensure its legitimate defense. France will also continue its support for the Ukrainian courts and the International Criminal Court to combat impunity for crimes committed by Russia.