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French press review 12 October 2015

Saturday's twin bomb attacks in the Turkish capital, Ankara, dominate this morning's French front pages. Most analysts seem ready to blame the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan for its divisive strategy; some suggesting that Turkey is on the brink of civil war. And there's a new dating agency for dogs.

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Under the headline "Worst-case scenario," left-leaning Libération says Turkey is on the verge of civil war. With the added complication that Saturday's explosions could have been the work of jihadists from the very groups Turkey has been supporting in the Syrian conflict.

Communist L'Humanité has no hesitation in condemning Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, saying the Ankara blasts are the tragic result of his strategy, which has alienated both the kurds and the political left.

Catholic La Croix looks at a deeply divided nation, which is due to hold parliamentary elections in three weeks' time. The same Paris paper says European governments are unwilling to be overly critical of the Erdogan regime since Turkey has a vital role to play in the handling of the Syrian refugee crisis.

Right-wing Le Figaro relegates Turkey to second place on its front page, noting that Turkish anger in the wake of the Ankara attacks seems mostly to be directed against the government.

Le Figaro's main story looks forward to the December regional elections here in France, with a headline warning that both left and right are fearful that we'll see another surge in support for the far-right Front National.

The analysis seems to suggest that both socialists and main-stream right are trying to mobilise their own luke-warm voters by warning that Marine Le Pen and her xenophobic hordes could win two, perhaps even three regions.

Le Figaro's editorial says it's largely the fault of the socialist government that millions of voters will, once again, support a party which, whatever its nationalistic trappings, proposes an anti-European economic platform which would ruin an already dilapidated France.

Le Monde's business supplement is excited about progress made last week at the climate conference in Lima, Peru, the last big environmental howdy-doody before the Greens arrive in Paris for COP 21.

With just six weeks to go to the climate conference in the French capital, Friday saw the signing in Lima of a series of deals between the big lenders like the IMF and the World Bank to provide a further 15 billion to use in the fight against what the human race is doing to the planet.

Says Le Monde, if you add last week's pledges to the 62 billion already promised by the members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and the ten billion the UN's Green Fund hopes to be able to raise, you can see that the 100 billion dollars promised in 2009 is within our grasp. Because, at current exchange rates, 100 billion dollars is 88 billion euros. So, we're just a billion somethings off the mark, provided everybody who promised in dollars pays in dollars, and the guy who adds it all up counts in euros.

On inside pages, Le Monde looks at a new type of internet dating service, where you present yourself to potential partners as the owner of a pet. A typical ad reads "My name is Dino. I have all the charismatic charm of Brad Pitt. And four legs. I like peeing on flowers and chasing wild boar. I am the best part of the guy who holds the other end of the leash." This is accompanied by a big photo of the dog, and a tiny photo of the guy.

The idea is to find people who share your passion for walkies, stick-throwing, flower peeing, boar chasing and so on, with an initial view to seeing how everybody gets on. If you have nothing but a goldfish to offer, get out there. Goldfish, too, have the right to love.

It's not as daft as it sounds, says a social psychologist, since people with pets are seen as more compassionate, more sensitive and more responsible than the rest of us. Plus they already understand the obligations which pets impose on their owners: "I can't meet you tonight, cherie, my budgy has the burps."

What happens when the guy with five cats moves in with the girl with two elkhounds remains to be seen. Love, they say, conquers all.

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