French Farmers Blockade Paris in Protest Against Government Policies

Government deploys 15,000 police as similar protests erupt across Europe; Macron to discuss crisis with EU Commission chief.

Farmers in France have blocked major roads into Paris, protesting against low incomes, bureaucratic red tape, and environmental policies they say hinder their competitiveness.
The French government has responded by deploying 15,000 police and gendarmes to protect strategic locations, including airports and the Rungis international wholesale food market.
Similar protests by farmers have been taking place in other European countries, including Belgium, Germany, Poland, Romania, and the Netherlands, in response to cuts to subsidies and new regulations.
French President Emmanuel Macron is set to meet with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to discuss the crisis and the support measures that farmers are demanding at the EU level.
The French government has promised to take new measures to help farmers, but farmer leaders have said that the government's responses so far have been insufficient.