French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday criticized remarks by former U.S. President Donald Trump that mocked Macron’s marriage, saying they were unworthy of a response.
The comments appeared in a video briefly posted by the White House to YouTube and later removed. In it, Trump criticized NATO allies for refusing U.S. operations in Iran and singled out France. Trump imitated Macron and said he had asked France for help in the Gulf, adding that Macron was “whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw,” an apparent reference to a video last year showing Brigitte Macron pushing her husband’s face during a Vietnam visit.
Trump then quoted an imagined reply in a mock French accent: “No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won.”
Macron called the remarks “neither elegant nor up to standard” and said he would not engage with them. He urged attention instead to de-escalating tensions in the Middle East and securing a ceasefire, criticizing what he called excessive public commentary on the issue. “We all need stability, calm, a return to peace — this isn’t a show!” he said.