French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday criticized Donald Trump’s mocking remarks about his marriage, saying they did not deserve a response.
The comments came in a video briefly posted by the White House on YouTube and later removed, in which Trump derided NATO allies for declining US operations in Iran and targeted Macron. Trump said he had asked France for help in the Gulf and imitated the French president, claiming, “whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw,” an apparent reference to a video from last year that appeared to show Brigitte Macron pushing her husband’s face during a Vietnam visit.
Trump continued, quoting an imagined reply: “No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won,” delivered in a mock French accent.
Macron called the remarks “neither elegant nor up to standard” and declined to engage. He said the priority should be efforts to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East and secure a ceasefire, criticizing the excess of public commentary on the matter. “We all need stability, calm, a return to peace — this isn’t a show!” he said.
Edited by: Alex Berry