Paris, Sept 21, (dpa/GNA) – After three and a half months of political crisis, France has a new government.
The Élysée Palace announced the names of the more than 30 ministers and state secretaries on Saturday evening. All key positions will be filled by new faces, with only Sébastien Lecornu keeping his post as defence minister.
Jean-Noël Barrot will be foreign minister, Bruno Retailleau will be interior minister. Antoine Armand will be responsible for economic and financial affairs.
It is still unclear, however, whether this will put an end to the political crisis that has been gripping France since early summer, and how long the new government will last.
The political situation in France remains paradoxical. Although the left-wing alliance unexpectedly won the early parliamentary elections just over two months ago, the country is now getting a centre-right government under the new Prime Minister Michel Barnier, in which the left-wing camp is not playing a dominant role.
A vote of no confidence could soon be looming from both the left and the far right. Before the cabinet names were released, several thousand people protested across France.
GNA