The transformation of the representative structures of “French Islam” during the presidency of Emmanuel Macron

   The article considers events related to the political course of French president Emmanuel Macron and his attempts to liberate Islam in France from foreign influence, which led to the disruption of the functioning of the French Council of the Muslim Faith, an organization that for a long time was the main “interlocutor” of the government of the Fifth Republic on issues of representing the interests of the French Islamic community at the state level. The issues of the formation of two new religious and political structures – the National Council of Imams and the Forum of Islam of France – are also high-lighted. In addition, the author demonstrates the measures taken by Algeria as a response to Paris’s policy, restricting the foreign financing of Islamic organizations, establishing control over large foreign donations and limiting foreign interference in the activities of religious institutions through the law of August 24, 2021, aimed at strengthening respect for republican principles and the Charter of Principles of Islam of France. The author also points to the fact that the Great Paris Mosque retains its financial independence, provided by the PDRA, and, as a result, strengthens its position in France and in Europe, which causes discontent among representatives of the European Parliament, and also clearly demonstrates the involvement of supposedly apolitical and purely religious French organizations and associations in political processes not only at the national, but also at the continental level.

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