Official speeches and statements - October 4, 2016

1. Yemen - Release of Mme Nourane Houas - Communiqué issued by the Presidency of the Republic (Paris - October 4, 2016)

The President has learned of the release of our compatriot, Nourane Houas, who had been held hostage in Yemen since 1 December 2015.

He expresses his gratitude to all those who enabled this ordeal to have a happy ending, particularly Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said, Sultan of Oman.

He pays tribute to Nourane Houas’ bravery during her long detention and shares her family’s joy.

He expresses his respect for the efforts of Peter Maurer and the members of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Today they are reunited with one of their own, who was kidnapped while carrying out her mission to serve people ravaged by armed conflicts.

2. The Comoros - Meeting between M. François Hollande, President of the Republic, and Mr Azali Assoumani, President of the Comoros - Communiqué issued by the Presidency of the Republic (Paris - October 4, 2016)

The French President today hosted a meeting with Mr Azali Assoumani, President of the Comoros. He congratulated him on his election and paid tribute to the country’s institutional stability.

François Hollande confirmed France’s commitment to the development of the Comoros. He said France and the European Union would like to step up their cooperation in the areas of health, access to water, education, environmental protection and renewable energy production. He said he had entrusted MM. Xavier Darcos and Jean-Jack Queyranne, former members of the French government responsible for cooperation and Overseas France respectively, with the task of listening and dialogue and then with implementing this action plan.

The Head of State also signaled France’s desire to combat illegal migration more effectively.

The two heads of state also reviewed shared challenges such as security, the fight against terrorism, climate change and Francophony.

3. Climate - Ratification of the Paris Agreement - Statement by Mme Ségolène Royal, Minister of the Environment, Energy and Marine Affairs, responsible for International Climate Relations (Paris - September 30, 2016)

The special European Council of Environment Ministers, meeting in Brussels today, has just authorized the European Union to deposit its ratification instrument for the Paris Agreement following the approval of the European Parliament, which is meeting on the issue on 4 October.

I thank the Slovak presidency for convening this extraordinary Council of Environment Ministers, as the Slovak Prime Minister and I had agreed to do when I met him in my capacity as COP21 President in Bratislava on 9 September.

Europe is approaching its date with history in the climate negotiations. This decisive stage could enable us to cross the threshold of 55% of greenhouse gas emissions necessary for the Paris Agreement to come into force, and to maintain the EU’s decisive role.

To date, 61 countries accounting for 47.79% of total emissions have ratified the agreement.

Six EU member states accounting for 4.39% of global greenhouse gas emissions - France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Malta and Slovakia - have completed their domestic ratification procedures.

India, which accounts for 4.1% of global emissions, announced a ratification of the Paris Agreement on 2 October 2016.

Consequently, if these steps are taken, less than one year after the Paris Agreement was adopted, the threshold of 55% of emissions could be achieved, realizing the goal I set for the agreement to come into force in 2016. The climate emergency is thus being fully taken into account.