Elections, trials, space missions, major sporting events… The year 2022 will be rich in news, both in France and internationally. CNEWS takes stock of major events for this coming year, provided the coronavirus pandemic does not upset this timeline.
France takes over the presidency of the European Union (1er January)
The start of 2022 will be marked by the launch of the French rotating presidency of the European Union. At the beginning of December, President Emmanuel Macron, who claims to be a “convinced European”, set out the objectives that France will defend during the six months of the presidency of the Council of the EU. He particularly wants to reform the Schengen area to allow Europe to be better able to control its borders, but also the creation of a “European civic service” of six months for those under 25.
France: Opening of the trial of Nordahl leLandais for the murder of Maëlys (January 31)
He had already been sentenced in May in Chambéry to 20 years of criminal imprisonment for the murder of Corporal Arthur Noyer. Nordahl Lelandais will have his second trial for the murder of little Maëlys, from January 31 to February 18 before the Assizes of Isère. The 8-year-old girl was kidnapped in August 2017 during a wedding in the village hall of Pont-de-Beauvoisin in Isère, a case that shook the whole of France. In February 2018, Nordahl Lelandais had confessed to having “involuntarily” killed the little girl and to having got rid of the body.
United States: takeoff of the Orion capsule to the Moon (February 2022)
The United States is relaunching its space program to the Moon at the start of 2022. Indeed, the first mission of the Artemis program is scheduled for February. This very first expedition to the Moon will not include an astronaut on board, the return of humans to the star being scheduled for 2025 at the earliest. These missions will use NASA’s giant new rocket, SLS, and power the Orion capsule. They echo the Apollo program, which enabled the first astronauts to walk on the moon in the 1970s.
China: Beijing Winter Olympics (February 4 to 20, 2022)
The Olympic Games under the sign of diplomatic tensions and the coronavirus pandemic. In recent weeks, the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom have announced a boycott of the Beijing Winter Games. A form of protest against the Chinese regime’s crackdown on the Muslim Uyghur population of the Xinjiang region. If the politicians boycott the opening ceremony, the athletes themselves will participate in the events. It remains to be seen whether they will be able to take place, given the worrying spread of the Omicron variant across the world.
France: Presidential election (April 10 and 24)
Who will be the new head of state until 2027? The presidential election will take place on April 10 (1er tour) and April 24 (2nd turn) next. At this stage of the campaign, and even if he is not yet officially a candidate, Emmanuel Macron remains the favorite of the 1st round in the polls, closely followed by Valérie Pécresse (LR), Marine Le Pen (RN) and Eric Zemmour (Reconquest!). The formalization of Christiane Taubira’s candidacy at the start of 2022 could also reshuffle the cards on the left, while Anne Hidalgo (PS), Jean-Luc Mélenchon (LFI), Yannick Jadot (EELV) and Fabien Roussel (PCF) are at the lagging behind in the polls.
France: verdict in the trial of the attacks of November 13, 2015 (May)
End of a trial that will have lasted more than eight months. Opened last September 8 at the Special Assize Court in Paris, the trial of the attacks of November 13, 2015 should normally end at the end of May. The deliberation is scheduled for May 24 and 25, with a decision rendered immediately for the twenty defendants. Fourteen alleged accomplices of jihadist commandos will also be tried in April in Belgium.
United States: delivery of sentences for singer R. Kelly (May)
The American R&B star will know his sentence. R. Kelly was convicted on September 27, 2021 in New York City court of having been at the head for years of a “system” of sexual exploitation of young women, including minors. He was also convicted of various sex crimes. His prison sentence will therefore be pronounced on May 4, 2022. He risks life imprisonment.
United States: Summit of the Americas (June)
It is the first time that the United States will host the Summit of the Americas since the inaugural meeting of 1994. This meeting takes place approximately every three years, and brings together all the leaders of North, South America, Central and Caribbean. This is the ninth Summit since its creation, the last having taken place in Lima, Peru in 2018, in which Donald Trump did not participate.
United Kingdom: 70 years of reign of Queen Elizabeth II (June 2)
A Platinum Jubilee. Never has a British monarch reigned so long: Elizabeth II will celebrate her 70th reign in 2022. She ascended to the throne on February 6, 1952, when she was only 25 years old. On this occasion, an extended weekend, from June 2 to 5, will allow the citizens of the United Kingdom to celebrate this exceptional event. In particular, a large military parade will be organized from Buckingham Palace.
Brazil: presidential election (October 2)
A duel at the top which is announced. Outgoing far-right president Jair Bolsonaro is the loser in the polls against former left-wing president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva. The latter had however been thrown in prison for corruption in the Lava Jato affair, which rocked Brazil in 2016 and led to the dismissal of former president Dilma Rousseff. Bleached by justice and released from prison since, Lula has regained his popularity of yesteryear, and relies on the disastrous record of his opponent Bolsonaro, in particular in the management of the coronavirus crisis, to convince the Brazilians on October 2 .
United States: midterm elections (November 8)
Decisive elections for Joe Biden. The “Mid-terms”, or “mid-term elections”, will take place in the United States next November. During these ballots, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives are renewed, as well as a third of the 100 seats in the Senate. A major stake for the current American president, who has only a weak parliamentary majority. Its confidence rating continues to decline, especially since the chaotic withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in August, or because of its management of the health crisis.
France: appeal trial of the foiled Thalys attack (21 November – 16 December)
He denies having wanted to commit an indiscriminate attack. On December 17, 2020, Ayoub El Khazzani was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Paris Special Assize Court, as part of the trial for the foiled Thalys attack in August 2015. He boarded the train in Brussels, armed with a Kalashnikov, a pistol, a cutter and 300 ammunition, but had been overpowered by passengers. El Khazzani will be retried from November 21 to December 16, 2022 on appeal, and hopes that his sentence will be revised downwards. Three other logisticians of this foiled attack were sentenced in 2020 to 27, 25 and 7 years in prison.
Qatar: FIFA World Cup (November 21 – December 18)
The end of 2022 will be marked by one of the most anticipated sporting events: the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. A competition already marked by controversy. Many NGOs have denounced “modern slavery” to which immigrant workers responsible for building all the infrastructure to host the Cup are victims. At least 50 of them would have died in 2020 on the construction sites. Heavy criticism of the environmental record of all these constructions and corruption scandals also splash the organizers.
