French Minister for European Affairs, Benjamin Haddad, announced on Monday his intention to call on Brussels for stricter oversight of European funding. The goal: to ensure that EU funds do not benefit actors suspected of ties to antisemitism or Islamism.
“It is unthinkable and unacceptable that a single euro of European public money should go to finance organizations, associations, or individuals hostile to our values—whether linked to hatred, antisemitism, or Islamism,” Haddad stated at a press briefing held at Beauvau.
He was speaking following a meeting between Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau and his Austrian counterpart.
An official memo attached to the proposal advocates the introduction of awareness training on European Union values and calls for mandatory Holocaust education in all schools across the EU.
This push for firmness is also embodied by Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, a new leading figure of the French right. Recently elected president of Les Républicains (LR), Retailleau is known for his strong conservative stance and uncompromising rhetoric on issues of identity, foreign policy, and democratic values.
He is especially vocal in his criticism of regimes such as Algeria and Iran, which he frequently accuses of antisemitism and authoritarian abuses targeting Jews in France and Europe, often via Hamas, a designated terrorist organization and its proxies.
Retailleau advocates for a more vigilant European policy toward “anti-Western theocracies and dictatorships.” His leadership of LR marks an ideological shift, aligning with the desire to tighten control over European financial flows and safeguard the democratic foundations of the European continent.