Paris [France], April 30 (ANI): French President Emmanuel Macron responded after King Charles III took a playful swipe at US President Donald Trump over his remarks belittling European allies.
During his US visit, the King said in an address, “You recently commented, Mr President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German. Dare I say that if it wasn’t for us, you’d be speaking French?” The remark drew applause and laughter from the audience, including Mr Trump.
Macron uploaded the clip and wrote, “That would be chic!”
Trump had earlier asserted American dominance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, saying on January 21, “The USA is the economic engine of the planet. And when America booms, the entire world booms. Without us, right now you’d all be speaking German and a little Japanese, perhaps.”
He has also mocked Macron on personal grounds, joking about the French president’s sunglasses—worn due to an eye health issue—and, on April 2, making disparaging comments about Macron’s marriage while chastising France for not joining a US-Israeli offensive against Iran. As reported by CNN, Trump said, “I called up France, Macron, whose wife treats him extremely badly, (he is) still recovering from the right to the jaw,” apparently referring to a 2025 video in which Brigitte Macron appeared to slap the president aboard the French presidential jet.
Tensions between the White House and France are long-running. On March 17, 2025, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked about a French MEP calling for the Statue of Liberty to be returned, replied sardonically that unnamed French politicians should “remind them that it’s only because of the United States of America that the French are not speaking German right now.”
Separately, France was caught in a security incident when Iran fired shots at a French ship trying to leave the Strait of Hormuz, the New York Times reported. Macron blamed “both sides” for the episode, saying it was partly prompted by a US blockade decision that led Iranians to withdraw from opening the Strait. (ANI)
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