French media warn Macron is 'on the offensive' in Brexit talks to shore up domestic support

Media outlets across Europe have turned their attention to the final days of Brexit negotiations this week, with the dispute between British leader Boris Johnson and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron over fishing and the "level playing field" taking centre stage.

"French bashing: Brexiters have their frog party" was the headline of an article in the French newspaper Libération, seemingly placing the blame for stalled negotiations at the door of 10 Downing Street.

“The froggies are always a favourite dish when it comes to finding someone to blame,” claimed the Left-leaning daily.

By contrast, Corriere della Sera in Italy reported that the European position in the talks had hardened considerably, largely down to the French, who were said to be "fearful of conceding too much to the British".

This was a theme that was also picked up by French daily Le Monde, which said that talks were “on a precipice" and that domestic political concerns were a major factor.

“With two years to go before the presidential election, Emmanuel Macron wants to avoid at all costs a new social movement that would fuel the populist vote.”

On fishing, France is “particularly on the offensive," it added.

Libération also noted Macron's hardline stance on the issue: “Emmanuel Macron is accused of hardening his stance on fishing for electoral reasons with the presidential ballot two years away. This is no doubt partly true."

But the UK’s intransigence over fish is “more emotional and symbolic than economic,” it claimed.

Meanwhile in Germany, Der Spiegel magazine carried an analysis by its foreign editor, Mathieu von Rohr, who wrote: “If the negotiations fail, the economic consequences will be dramatic — particularly for the British, but also for the EU.”

“One thing is certain: if a deal is reached, the British will soon find out that, despite the promise of great new freedom, many of the rules of the common market will continue to apply to them," he added.

Le Monde has also warned of the potentially disastrous consequences of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit.

A no deal in the coming days would cost the UK, “already one of the worst-hit by the Covid pandemic”, some €40 billion (£36bn), it claimed, and would be a “crushing defeat” for Johnson, whose credibility has already been “sorely damaged by his handling of the first wave".

French newspaper Le Figaro today quoted sources saying that both sides want a deal, but that demands from the British side made a compromise unlikely. Their headline read: "Brexit: Back to the poker game in Brussels."

The paper cited a diplomatic source as saying: "The British want a deal but without commitments, which is a contradiction in terms."

The source added: "(Johnson) could have said that in a globalised world, it is understandable that we need to find common norms. But he refuses to budge on this fundamental demand on sovereignty."

German outlets also picked up on this theme. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper focused on EU accusations that the UK has derailed the talks with sudden late demands.

Some in the EU now believe “Johnson is trying to sabotage the negotiations on the home stretch”, the newspaper claimed.

“It is possible that he has only now realised how unfounded his Brexit rhetoric will be shown up as when the largely negotiated deal comes into force on January 1,” it said.

The report quoted EU sources as claiming talks broke down on Friday because “the British side suddenly brought up an issue that was already thought to be resolved”.