French President Emmanuel Macron said France and the United States must respect each other, in a response to a flurry of critical tweets by Donald Trump.
Macron said in an interview on Wednesday, 14 November, with French television TF1 from the Charles-de-Gaulle aircraft carrier off the coast of southern France that "the French don't expect from me to answer to tweets."
Trump lit into Macron on Tuesday, 13 November, over his suggestion for a European defence force, French tariffs on US wine and even Macron's approval ratings.
Asked whether Trump's four tweets were unpleasant and inelegant, the French leader answered: "You summed up everything.” He said he thinks that Trump "is doing American politics and I let him do American politics."
“To be honest, I don’t do diplomacy or politics through tweets and comments.”Emmanuel Macron, French President
Earlier on Wednesday, government spokesperson Benjamin Griveaux suggested that the US president lacked "common decency" by launching his broadside on a day when France was mourning victims of the November 2015 attacks in Paris.
"We were commemorating the assassination of 130 of our compatriots three years ago in Paris and Saint-Denis, and so I will reply in English: 'Common decency' would have been appropriate", Griveaux said.
Trump's tweets underscored tensions between the once-chummy leaders and displayed the US president's irritation over criticism of how he acted in France.
“Diplomacy is not made through tweets but through bilateral discussions,” Macron said during Wednesday’s weekly Cabinet meeting in comments reported by Griveaux.
The French and the American leaders met on Saturday, 10 November, in Paris before ceremonies commemorating a century since the armistice of the World War I.
Since Macron's election last year and their first white-knuckle handshake at a NATO summit, they have had an up-and-down relationship. Macron called Trump "my good friend" in front of reporters this weekend and their meeting was described as cordial by the French presidency.
Trump's tweet Tuesday that said "MAKE FRANCE GREAT AGAIN!" revived French national pride on social media. Many replied by recalling France's World Cup victory in July, 20 years after winning its first title.
France player Benjamin Mendy replied “don’t worry bro,” placing two stars in his tweet to signify the country’s two World Cup victories. Many others posted photos and reference to the football victory.
French decathlon champion Kevin Mayer tweeted "work in progress, dear Donald," posting a photo of his recent world record, beating US athlete Ashton Eaton's previous mark.
Trump’s Twitter Rant
US President Donald Trump escalated his verbal assaults against France on Tuesday, 13 November, suggesting that America's stalwart European ally would have been vanquished in both world wars if not for the military firepower provided by the United States.
Trump tweeted about a suggestion by French President Emmanuel Macron that Europe build up its militaries because the continent can no longer depend on the US for defence.
Macron had also said Europe needs to protect itself against cyber threats from China, Russia and the US.
The US president has long complained that NATO countries don't pay their fair share of the defence alliance's expenses, leaving the US to carry much of the burden. He has criticised Macron before and after attending a weekend ceremony in Paris to commemorate 100 years since the end of World War I.
Trump and Macron met on Saturday at the Elysee Palace and discussed defence, trade and other issues.
A top adviser to Macron said on Tuesday that the French position has been "clarified." The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with French customs, said Macron explained the European army issue to Trump, stressing that France was not making a choice between a European defence mechanism and multilateral organisations such as NATO.
‘French Tariffs on American Wine Not Fair’
Trump also complained on Tuesday about tariffs on US wines sold in France. He tweeted that French tariffs on American wine are “not fair, must change!”
Nearly all US wine exports to major markets, including the European Union – of which France is a part – face tariffs, according to the Wine Institute, which represents California winemakers in Washington on matters of tax, trade and regulatory issues.
Trump, who built a career as a businessman before he entered politics, opened a winery in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2011.
‘Emmanuel Suffers From Low Approval Rating’
Trump also appeared to take a dig at Macron's low public approval rating, and called France the most “nationalist” country. This is after President Macron said that nationalism is a threat to world peace.
Macron is hovering around 30 percent in popularity polls, while the unemployment rate is just above 9 percent.
Trump's continued complaints about France and Macron struck a nerve with some in the European nation, especially since the president's latest broadsides came on the third anniversary of the Paris terror attacks that killed 130 people in 2015.
It prompted French journalist Hugo Clement to tweet in response:
(Published in an arrangement with AP.)
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