Farmers started blockades around Paris

French farmers have begun shutting down major highways around Paris, threatening to block the capital in an intensifying standoff with the government over working conditions, AFP reported.
In recent weeks, the European Union's biggest agricultural producer has seen a flurry of protests by farmers angry at income, bureaucracy and environmental policies they say are undermining their ability to compete with less stringent countries.
Protesting farmers began blocking highways at 14:00 local time, starting with the A13 west of the capital and the A4 east.
The farmers said their aim was to set up eight points to block the main roads to Paris.
"We need answers," said Karin Duc, a farmer in the southwestern Lotin-et-Garonne department, as she joined a convoy of tractors headed for Paris.
"This is the last battle for agriculture. This is a matter of survival," she said.
On one of the tractors in the convoy was placed a placard reading: "We will not die in silence".
In response, the government ordered the deployment of 15,000 police and gendarmerie.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told security forces to exercise restraint. But he also warned farmers not to interfere at strategic points.
"We will not allow government buildings, tax offices or supermarkets to be damaged, nor will trucks carrying foreign produce be stopped. It is clear that this is unacceptable," he said.
Darmanin said the protests would not be allowed to affect Paris' Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports as well as the Rungis international wholesale food market south of the city.
Armored police vehicles were deployed at Rungis after some farmers threatened to "occupy" it.
The police and gendarmerie also have orders to prevent an incursion into Paris itself, Darmanin said.
The government is trying to prevent the spread of discontent among farmers ahead of June's European Parliament elections, which are seen as a key test for President Emmanuel Macron's government.
Macron called a meeting with several ministers to discuss the situation, his office said.
During his visit to a farm, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal again tried to address farmers' concerns after a series of announced concessions failed to quell the crisis.
"I want to clarify things and see what further measures we can take," he said.
Arnaud Russo, head of the main farmers' union FNSEA, said he expected to meet Atal later today.
"Our aim is not to annoy the French or make their lives difficult, but to put pressure on the government," he told RTL television.
Earlier, about 30 activists of the environmental organization "Greenpeace" launched smoke grenades in the Place de la Concorde in Paris, near the Champs Elysees.
They unfurled a placard in support of the farmers, after which they were led away by the police.
Taxi drivers have also organized their own protest movement against what they say is insufficient remuneration for transporting patients by the French health services.
Their stops contributed to the violations on the highways.
In neighboring Belgium, farmers also stepped up their campaign, blocking a key highway on January 28 to demand better conditions.
Dozens of tractors drove through the interchange and stopped traffic on the E42 highway north of Namur in the south of the country.
Protesting farmers outside a Belgian football stadium delayed the match between Racing Genk and Sint-Truden by 30 minutes at the weekend.
In recent weeks, farm protests have grown in Germany, Poland, Romania and the Netherlands. /BGNES