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Emmanuel Macron spoke this Thursday, June 18, the day after the G7 summit. During an interview on France 2, the President of the Republic notably returned to the agreement signed between Iran and the United States at Versailles, a signing which was “spontaneous”, assured the head of state. He nevertheless admitted that he does not think the war is “totally over.”
The President of the Republic also returned to pump prices, artificial intelligence and the Lyhanna affair. On the question of his successor, he indicated that the French “know how to choose what is good for them and seize their destiny.”
A war in the Middle East “not completely over”
The president explained that this G7 allowed “important progress”. The agreement “was finalized in the last hours of this G7, it was good that it did not wait, that it could be signed in these terms.”
Nevertheless, the president does not “believe that we can say that it (the war, Editor’s note) is completely over.” “We have known the situation for years. Nobody wants Iran to not have a nuclear weapon,” recalled the president, admitting that: “Everything is not settled. Are there any question marks? Yes and I share them.”
But “it’s always better to have an agreement than war, especially when there may be risks of escalation,” added the French president. “We are entering a new phase which is that of cooperation, of dialogue, which is better than war.”
For the president, this agreement – to which the countries of the region must be bound – initially allows for a ceasefire but also the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and peace in Lebanon. “At the end of his 60 days, we will see what we are doing on nuclear power, ballistics, and whether we have an Iran that is less dangerous than before,” he finished.
Fuel prices will “gradually fall”
Emmanuel Macron also returned to fuel prices which will “gradually fall” with the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. “The signing of this agreement immediately lowered prices. They had soared, around 80 dollars per barrel, and prices at the pump will gradually fall,” assured the President of the Republic.
He also mentioned that the G7 countries had decided to “finance alternative routes together” to “diversify our infrastructures”. “We cannot all depend on this strait,” he added.
For Emmanuel Macron, it is “too early” to give the economic cost of the war but “what happened since the end of February weighed on our economies.”
An appeal to Benjamin Netanyahu
Emmanuel Macron also called on Benjamin Netanyahu to “show responsibility and rationality”. “I disagreed with him on what he did in Gaza. But the policy which continues to be carried out in Gaza, carried out in the West Bank and in South Lebanon is in the long term contrary to the interests of Israel”, added the president of the Republic.Â
“Hezbollah is a risk for Israel, that’s entirely true”, but the security of the Jewish state “cannot be ensured by the conquest of a neighboring territory”, declared on France 2 the French president, stressing that Benjamin Netanyahu’s policy, both in Lebanon and in Gaza and the West Bank, “fuels the resentment and violence of all the populations of the region.”
He added that he would once again seek to mobilize the international community to “help the Lebanese army regain control of its territory.”
“We have to go for it” for European investments in AI
Emmanuel Macron also called for massive European investments in artificial intelligence. “I use AI. To do research, improve, understand. I promise Mistral a lot, I use Le Chat,” defended the President of the Republic.
“We are the country which has created the most jobs in terms of AI in Europe, added the President of the Republic. There are two leaders (in this field, Editor’s note), the United States and China, Europe has failed. In Europe, we are the leaders. (…) We must go for it”, said added the head of state.
Asked about the suspension of access to Mythos 5 and Fable 5, two AI models from Anthropic, to foreign nationals after a decision from Washington, Emmanuel Macron assured that the subject will be “resolved in the days and weeks to come”. “Until now, the American administration said ‘we must not regulate AI’, so I am happy (with this turnaround, Editor’s note). But there was an overreaction”, for Emmanuel Macron.
There was “a hidden continent” for sexual violence
Questioned about the Lyhanna affair, the president admits that “there are things that have not been done well” while adding that “inspection work has been requested and will be delivered on June 22”. “I am not going to preempt it and start naming this or that guilty (…) but this shows you that we must all be constantly vigilant,” adds Emmanuel Macron.
Concerning sexual violence, he speaks of it as a “hidden continent” ensuring that his government has helped to “free speech”. “When we lift this lid, we all experience a feeling of revolt because touching a child is the worst thing. But deep down, we must never get used to it, we must be indignant, but this indignation must not mean helplessness and vindictiveness,” he added.
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