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Day: 24 June 2026

Prince’s family marks Saint-Jean with traditional bonfire ceremony

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2026

A towering bonfire, traditional folk dancing and a crowd gathered beneath the Prince’s Palace marked Monaco’s annual Saint-Jean celebrations on Tuesday evening, as Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene were joined by Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella to watch one of the Principality’s most enduring traditions.

The evening began with the blessing of the Holy Sacrament in the Palatine Chapel, led by Archbishop Dominique-Marie David. Afterwards, the Princely family stepped out from a window overlooking Palace Square to witness the lighting of the traditional Batafoegu bonfire, a ritual that has long been associated with Saint John’s Day and the summer solstice.

Photo credit: Michaël Alesi, Prince’s Palace

Below, residents and visitors filled the square as flames rose into the night sky. Members of Monaco’s folk group, La Palladienne de Monaco, performed traditional dances around the fire, their colourful costumes and choreographed movements adding to the spectacle.

The Batafoegu remains one of the visual highlights of Monaco’s summer calendar, bringing together religious tradition, folklore and community celebration in the heart of Monaco-Ville. From their vantage point above the square, the Princely family watched as the festivities unfolded beneath the Palace walls, sharing the moment with the hundreds of people who had gathered for the occasion.

Photo credit: Michaël Alesi, Prince’s Palace

The celebrations continued on the evening of 23th June with the traditional Saint-Jean festivities, which have been passed down through generations and remain an important part of Monaco’s cultural heritage.

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Photo credit: Michaël Alesi, Prince’s Palace

Basketball: AS Monaco crowned Betclic Elite champions after Game 5 victory over Paris

by: Kayla Sauceda
24/06/2026

After forcing a winner-takes-all Game 5 with a dominant victory on Sunday, AS Monaco headed to the Adidas Arena on Tuesday 23 June knowing that a win over Paris would secure the title. In a battle fought until the end, the Roca Team came out on top 101-92 over Paris, claiming the French championship.

With Matthew Strazel suspended following his Game 3 ejection, Mike James made his long-awaited return to the lineup wearing Strazel’s No. 32 jersey in tribute. Paris opened the scoring through Nadir Hifi, going up 6 points early. Monaco, however, responded with an unanswered eight-point run to take the lead.

Both teams continued exchanging leads in the high-intensity atmosphere. Monaco’s offensive rebounding proved crucial, allowing them to capitalize on second and third-chance opportunities. Despite struggling from the free-throw line, converting just 66.7% of their attempts, Monaco ended the first quarter leading by three points.

The second quarter continued in a similar fashion, with neither side establishing sustained dominance. Paris reclaimed the lead shortly into the quarter as Monaco began to struggle on the boards. The Roca Team quickly responded, however, with a steal from Terry Tarpey helping extend Monaco’s lead to seven points.

Monaco’s improved efficiency inside the arc allowed them to establish control for much of the quarter. A late push from Paris reduced a nine-point Monaco lead to just three points heading into halftime.

Following the break, momentum shifted. Paris reclaimed the lead early in the third quarter as Monaco struggled to create quality shooting opportunities and committed turnovers. Paris took advantage of this, recording multiple steals within the first few minutes.

Monaco’s outside shooting also deserted them, with the team converting just 16.7% of their three-point attempts during this quarter. Paris capitalized, ending the third quarter with an eight-point advantage.

The final quarter, as had been proven throughout the series, once again proved decisive. Monaco delivered when it mattered most. A strong start to the fourth quarter quickly reduced Paris’ lead to just two points, before the Roca Team reclaimed the lead, holding Paris scoreless for more than two minutes during a 12-0 run.

Improved rebounding and greater shooting efficiency allowed Monaco to maintain their advantage as time wound down. Paris put up a fight throughout the closing stages, but the Roca Team remained composed while extending their lead to eight points in the final minute before securing a 101-92 victory.

Each player on the Roca Team arrived ready to leave everything on the court. Jaron Blossomgame led Monaco with 27 points, while Juhann Begarin contributed 18 points and nine rebounds. Finals MVP Elie Okobo added a double-double with 12 points and 15 assists as Monaco secured the title.

Following a challenging season both on and off the court, the Roca Team closed the season with multiple titles and a season to be proud of.

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Photo credit: AS Monaco Basket

New Monaco programme helps young people spot real news in the AI era

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2026

As artificial intelligence and social media make it harder than ever to tell fact from fiction, the Prince’s Government has launched a new programme designed to help young Europeans navigate disinformation, opening applications to 18 to 30-year-olds across the continent.

The initiative, ‘Youth Facing Disinformation – Why Journalists Matter’, forms part of Monaco’s presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers and sits under the organisation’s wider ‘Journalists Matter’ campaign for the safety of journalists. It is designed to give young people the tools to recognise authentic, verified sources, and is set to continue beyond the end of Monaco’s presidency in November.

Events planned in the Principality this October

In Monaco, the programme will run a series of public-facing events in October, including a press conference, a round-table discussion open to the public, and workshops and debates in schools involving international experts and Monegasque journalists. A companion video series is also in production, using a Socratic, fiction-based approach inspired by the style of social media content and short-form series, aimed at engaging young audiences directly on the mechanics of information overload, conspiracy thinking and disinformation.

A closing conference in Strasbourg

The programme’s centrepiece will be a two-day international conference in Strasbourg on 9th and 10th November, bringing together around 40 young people from across Europe at the Palace of Europe and the European Youth Centre. The event, which will mark the close of Monaco’s presidency, will combine high-level panels with interactive workshops involving media specialists, journalists and policymakers.

How to apply

Young applicants from Council of Europe member states can apply to join year-long working groups tasked with developing concrete projects on reliable information and quality journalism, by submitting a technological, artistic or environmental project through the Council of Europe’s website before 1st July. Up to four grants of €5,000 will be awarded to selected projects, which will be showcased at the Strasbourg event. A separate call, open from 6th July to 1st September, will allow young people who do not wish to join a year-long working group to apply simply to attend the Strasbourg conference itself.

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Photo credit: Rich Tervet, Unsplash

Monaco relaunches anti-cigarette litter campaign for 16th year

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2026

Monaco’s Mairie has launched the 16th edition of ‘Monaco Zéro Mégot,’ its long-running campaign against cigarette butt litter, with free pocket ashtrays distributed to residents, workers and visitors across the Principality this summer.

The campaign launched on Tuesday at the Marché de la Condamine, with Marjorie Crovetto, deputy mayor for quality of life, the environment and sustainable development, on hand alongside municipal council members and Kamila Ansiau of the Tourism and Convention Authority. Crovetto described the market as a fitting place to mark the relaunch, calling it a hub of everyday community life.

New distribution point at the market

A new distribution point has opened near the market’s shared library, located beneath the central marquee, alongside existing points at Monaco’s Town Hall and the Médiathèque Caroline. Pocket ashtrays will also be handed out at the Tourism and Convention Authority’s reception points throughout the summer. The campaign distributes around 6,000 of the reusable ashtrays each year, keeping the visual design created last year by artist Mr. One Teas.

A small habit with an outsized environmental cost

Crovetto pointed to the scale of the problem the campaign is designed to address, noting that cigarette butts are consistently among the most common items collected during World Clean Up Day, the global litter-collection event Monaco will hold again on 19th September. A single cigarette butt, she said, can contaminate up to 500 litres of water, a figure consistent with environmental research showing cigarette filters are among the most pervasive sources of ocean pollution worldwide.

Through the campaign, the Mairie and its partners are aiming to encourage residents and tourists alike to take simple, low-effort steps to help preserve Monaco’s environment.

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Photo source: Mairie de Monaco

 

New cross-border cycle path to finally link Menton and Ventimiglia

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2026

A new cycle path linking Ventimiglia and Menton has secured almost €2 million in funding, forming the first stretch of the Ciclovia Tirrenica and a section of the EuroVelo 8 Mediterranean Route that will eventually run the length of the Italian and French coastlines.

The funding was announced on Tuesday at the launch of EDUMOB3, a three-year sustainable mobility project backed by the Interreg France-Italy ALCOTRA programme and largely financed by the European Regional Development Fund. The project is led by the Liguria region, working alongside the municipality of Ventimiglia, the Alpes-Maritimes department and the municipality of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, with completion expected by June 2028.

Closing the final cross-border gap

The centrepiece of the project is a new cycle path between the Italian border and the Balzi Rossi museum in Ventimiglia, which will close the last gap in a continuous cross-border cycling route along the coast, connecting directly into the existing path on the French side. On the French side of the border, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin will upgrade a stretch of Avenue Winston Churchill to strengthen the link towards Menton, with the Alpes-Maritimes department coordinating the cross-border technical work. Beyond the infrastructure itself, the project also includes an educational strand aimed at encouraging everyday cycling among schools and residents.

Part of a wider coastal cycling network

Liguria’s infrastructure councillor, Giacomo Raul Giampedrone, said the project carried particular symbolic weight, since the Ventimiglia stretch will mark the starting point of the Ciclovia Tirrenica, a route planned to run from Ventimiglia to Rome.

He noted that 45 kilometres of the route between Ospedaletti and Andora had opened only days earlier, with the wider route expected to bring environmental, sporting and tourism benefits as it crosses the Ligurian coast.

Ventimiglia’s mayor, Flavio Di Muro, framed the project as part of a broader ambition for the town. “I think a mayor, beyond managing the day-to-day life of his community, also needs a vision for the future that looks at the new challenges facing the city, while promoting its tourism potential,” he said, adding that the goal was for Ventimiglia to be recognised not as a border town but as an international one.

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Photos source: Mairie de Ventimiglia

 

Monaco sets out Council of Europe presidency priorities in Strasbourg

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2026

Monaco’s Minister of State Christophe Mirmand and Foreign Affairs Minister Isabelle Berro-Amadeï addressed the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe this week, setting out the priorities of the Principality’s presidency of the Committee of Ministers to representatives of the organisation’s 46 member states.

The appearances came during the Parliamentary Assembly’s summer session, running from 22nd to 26th June in Strasbourg, and marked one of the first major set-piece moments of Monaco’s presidency, which began on 15th May and runs until 10th November. It is the first time the Principality has held the role since joining the Council of Europe in 2004.

Two addresses, two roles

Mirmand addressed the Assembly on 22nd June in a national capacity, taking questions from members and reaffirming Monaco’s commitment to the Council of Europe’s founding values, while highlighting what officials describe as the Monegasque model’s focus on proximity, solidarity and practical solutions.

Berro-Amadeï followed the next day, this time speaking as president of the Committee of Ministers, setting out the organisation’s recent achievements alongside the priorities Monaco has chosen for its six-month term. She also stressed the importance of dialogue, cooperation and multilateralism in addressing Europe’s current challenges. The presidency’s five stated priorities cover gender equality and violence against women, child protection and online radicalisation, sport as a tool for social inclusion, and collective security against organised crime.

Monaco’s Minister of State Christophe Mirmand. Photo credit: Stéphane Danna, Government Communications Department

Bilateral talks on the sidelines

Alongside the Assembly sessions, Mirmand and Berro-Amadeï held bilateral meetings with Secretary General Alain Berset, Assembly President Petra Bayr and the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, taking stock of the presidency’s progress so far and discussing the key dates ahead over the coming months.

Monaco’s delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly, made up of National Council members Béatrice Fresko-Rolfo, Christophe Brico, Christine Pasquier-Ciulla and Régis Bergonzi, also took an active role in the session’s proceedings.

Separately, as part of the presidency’s cultural programme, Berro-Amadeï opened a photography exhibition on Monaco’s architectural heritage, which will be on display at the Council of Europe for two weeks.

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Photo of Foreign Affairs Minister Isabelle Berro-Amadeï, credit: Stéphane Danna, Government Communications Department