French press review 27 November 2012

The front page of Le Monde sets out the menu for this morning's news with prominence for the civil war that has hit France's main right-wing party but also a minister's spat with ArcelorMittal and the state of Israeli-Palestinian relations.

In prime position, the centrist paper wonders if former president Nicolas Sarkozy can save the right-wing UMP party from self-destruction.

Le Monde's front-page editorial wonders at the behaviour of Arnaud Montebourg, the minister in charge of industrial development, who says France doesn't want anything to do with the ArcelorMittal steel empire.

On the international front, Le Monde believes that the current truce between Palestinians and Israel in the Gaza conflict represents a major victory for the Hamas government in Gaza.

This is because the Islamic Resistance Movement has shown itself capable of enforcing the ceasefire, thus proving that it has more political credibility than the Palestinian Authority. Hamas will continue to build its economic ties with the Egypt of Mohamed Morsi, source of basic necessities and of the weapons needed to replace those destroyed by the Israeli air force during the recent hostilities.

The Jewish state claims to have achieved all its objectives before agreeing to the Egypt-brokered ceasefire. This may be true from a military point of view, says Le Monde, but it's hard to believe that Israel has made any progress on the political front.

Sadly, the gap between the Palestinians of the West Bank and those of the Gaza Strip has been furthered widened.

Speaking of widening gaps, the battle for control of the right-wing UMP party here in France is showing no signs of cooling down.

Yesterda, former president Nicolas Sarkozy got stuck in, suggesting that the best way out of the current dead end is to rerun the election.

François Fillon, reckoned to be about 1,000 votes adrift, said, "Great idea, let's get on with it". But the official winner, Jean-François Copé, said, "Steady on chaps, we can talk reconciliation, arbitration and mediation till we go socialist pink in the face but I'm still the boss! Right?"

Which brings us back to the real world and the meeting later today between French President François Hollande and Indian steel billionaire Lakshmi Mittal. The two men are to discuss the future of that part of the Mittal empire which is based in France - 20,000 employees at 150 different sites.

Le Monde says it understands the anger of Industrial Recovery Minister Arnaud Montebourg since the debate centres on one crucial site, the smelting plant at Florange, loss-making as European and world demand for steel declines but a vital employer in a region already ravaged by deindustrialisation. If Mittal wants to sell Florange, runs the ministerial argument, let him also sell the other, profit-making bits, as well.

The Mittal empire has its own problems: massive losses linked to the global recession and an accumulated debt of 17 billion euros. The company has recently been downgraded by the ratings agency Standard & Poor's.