France presidential race
Polls are now open in the French presidential election, with incumbent Emmanuel Macron facing a tough challenge from far-right leader Marine Le Pen. A runoff is already in sight, with opinion polls projecting Macron to win the first round with a narrow lead over Le Pen. The centrist president was comfortably ahead until a few weeks ago, thanks to a strong economic recovery from the pandemic, and a fragmented opposition. But his ratings dipped due to a lackluster campaign and his focus on a hugely unpopular plan to increase the retirement age. The Eurosceptic Le Pen, on the other hand, has been gathering support by her focus on the government’s failure to address the high cost of living, among other things. The election is also overshadowed by Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.
NATO 'transformation'
NATO says it's mulling plans to station military forces on its borders permanently, so that it can be prepared to ward off any Russian aggression in the future. Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says NATO is undergoing a fundamental transformation, adding this is one of the long-term consequences of the Russian military offensive against Ukraine. He says NATO will decide on this transformation at its next summit planned for June. Russia is strongly opposed to NATO’s eastward expansion. The two sides held talks in January over Russia’s request for security guarantees, without any breakthrough. In February, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine, citing concerns over the possibility of its admission into NATO.
Pakistan political tensions
Pakistan's political drama entering a new stage, with candidates for the next prime minister about to file their nomination papers in the hours ahead. The parliament will meet on Monday to elect a new premier, after Imran Khan lost a no-confidence vote in parliament last night. Khan’s dismissal follows weeks of political turmoil. Last week, Khan’s allies tried to avoid the no-confidence vote by dissolving the parliament’s lower house. But the Supreme Court interfered, and ordered the parliament to reconvene and go through with the vote. Opposition parties accuse Khan of failing to help the economy and fight corruption. Shehbaz Sharif, the front-runner for the top job, says Khan's departure is a chance for a new beginning. Khan has not commented on his ouster yet. But before the vote, he said he would not accept an imported government and called for street protests today. Khan says he's falling victim to US-backed plans for regime change.
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