Western powers reacted swiftly to Monday's decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin to recognise the independence of the two self-proclaimed republics in eastern Ukraine, condemning Moscow and calling for sanctions. US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield heaped scorn on Putin's assertion that the Russian troops would take on a "peacekeeping" role.

The two countries had surprisingly good relations for the first four decades, and it was only in the 1990s that things started to fall apart.

While Prince Mohammed has been considered the de facto leader since his appointment as heir to the throne in June 2017, his growing prominence has never been more apparent than when he met with French President Emmanuel Macron in early December, and led the Gulf Cooperation Council summit on Tuesday.

A flight chartered by Paris flew out 258 Afghans who were ‘particularly threatened because of their activities, especially journalists, or because of their links to France, including former locally-recruited civilian personnel for our armies,’ France has said. The same flight carried 11 French nationals and about 60 from the Netherlands,...

The agreements will boost the strategic partnership between the two countries to serve their mutual interests.

French President Emmanuel Macron has called on his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi to return to fulfilling Tehran's obligations under the 2015 nuclear deal "without delay".

The hydrocarbon-rich North African country has been mired in civil war since the overthrow of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in a 2011 uprising, with the bloodshed drawing in competing Libya factions and Islamist groups, as well as regional powers.

Algerian reaction followed Macron’s comments last week in which he said Algeria’s post-independence “political-military system” had “totally re-written” the country’s history.

Algeria over the weekend recalled its ambassador from Paris and banned French military planes from its airspace.

France's jets regularly fly over Algerian territory to reach the Sahel region of western Africa, where its soldiers are helping to battle insurgents as part of its Barkhane operation. Algeria was angered last week after France cut visas to citizens of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.

The statement, from the Algerian presidency, said it had withdrawn its ambassador following media reports of the French president Macron’s comments.

France on Tuesday said it would sharply reduce the number of visas granted to people from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, accusing the former French colonies of not doing enough to allow illegal immigrants to return.

Paris accuses the former colonies of not doing enough to allow illegal immigrants to return. Immigration is shaping up to be a key issue in next year's French presidential election.

The ratification earlier this month of an electoral law that was clearly tailor-made for Khalifa Haftar, the military strongman who controls eastern Libya, raised tensions three months before the crucial ballot.

The two leaders discussed bilateral relations, investment opportunities, economy and culture, as well as other vital sectors, to drive sustainable development in both countries.

His visit to Mosul, a melting pot of Iraq's diverse ethnic and religious communities, is seen as an opportunity to renew his support for Christians in the Middle East

French president Emmanuel Macron vowed his country will maintain presence in Iraq no matter what Americans decide. After meeting Iraqi president Mustafa al-Khademi, Macron said Daesh remains a threat and the fight against these groups is a priority of Iraqi government.

Macron warned on Saturday the Islamic State group "remains a threat."

It was the ultraconservative Raisi's first reported call with a Western leader since taking office last week

Between 1960 and 1966, France conducted 17 atmospheric or underground nuclear tests deep in the Sahara desert of Algeria.

A consortium of major media companies, including the Washington Post and France’s Le Monde, recently said that one of Macron’s phone numbers was on the leaked list of potential Pegasus targets.

Bennett has defended his government saying the events occurred before he took office in May