Amélie de Montchalin, Minister of State for European Affairs, visited Berlin this morning to meet with her German counterpart, Michael Roth.

A week after Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian's participation in the German Council of Ministers, the minister of state, who will jointly serve, together with her German counterpart, as secretary-general for French-German cooperation, discussed the prospects for increased cooperation created by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which is expected to be ratified in the next few months.

Ms. de Montchalin and Mr. Roth also discussed current European issues ahead of the elections on May 26 in the context of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union.

By choosing Germany for her first visit since taking office on March 31, the minister of state underscored her attachment to French-German relations and its role in European integration.

Brunei – New criminal legislation (April 2, 2019)

Brunei announced the entry in force of a new criminal code on April 3, which provides for corporal punishment and the death penalty for crimes including homosexuality, apostasy, blasphemy, and adultery.

France is very concerned by this decision, which is inconsistent with the international commitments taken by Brunei Darussalam on human rights, and specifically the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment signed by that country in 2015; the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; and the Human Rights Declaration adopted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2012.

France calls on Brunei to renounce this project and to maintain its de facto moratorium on capital punishment, which has been in place since 1957. It reiterates its opposition to the death penalty everywhere and in all circumstances.