“Our Europe is mortal, it can die,” warned Emmanuel Macron in late April. Who knew that just a few weeks later France’s president would set about proving his point, by calling a snap election that threatens to plunge the entire EU into a potentially mortal crisis?

At present, global attention is focused on the immediate political dramas in France. The first round of voting will take place on June 30. The far-right Rassemblement National currently leads in the polls, with the New Popular Front, a coalition dominated by the far left, in second place.

Financial Times