It’s a remark that won’t help the currently tense relations between the Elysée and the White House. During a private lunch on Wednesday, Donald Trump targeted Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron while the American president continues to criticize NATO country leaders for not participating in the war against Iran.
A video posted on YouTube by the White House
“Macron, whose wife treats him extremely badly… he is still recovering from the punch he took to the jaw,” said Donald Trump in a video briefly posted on the White House’s YouTube channel, which was later taken down.
The American president was apparently referring to a viral video from last May showing Brigitte Macron bringing both hands to the French president’s face in what seemed like a small hit.
Donald Trump also claimed to have asked the French head of state for military support in the Gulf: “I said, ‘Emmanuel, we would like a little help in the Gulf, even though we are breaking records in terms of eliminating bad guys and destroying ballistic missiles.’ Then, imitating his counterpart with a French accent: ‘No, no, no… we can’t do that, Donald. We can do it once the war is won.'”
Showdown over the war in Iran
Emmanuel Macron is in Donald Trump’s crosshairs, who blames him for not authorizing flyovers of French territory in the context of the war against Iran, which began on February 28. More generally, the American president has multiplied bellicose statements towards NATO this week, referring to it on his Truth Social network as a “PAPER TIGER” and “COWARD.” “The United States will remember this,” he had said in a cabinet meeting.
On Tuesday, American Secretary of State Marco Rubio questioned the transatlantic bond with NATO like never before, stating that the United States must “reassess” their relations with the military alliance once the war against Iran is over.
