President Donald Trump kicked off his visit to Paris by firing off a harsh tweet attacking what he termed a “very insulting” comment by French President Emmanuel Macron.
The tweet was posted as Trump and the first lady touched down in Air Force One in Paris, where he’ll join other world leaders in a commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I.
Trump was annoyed that Macron earlier in the week called for a “true European army” to protect the continent’s countries, even from the U.S.
Trump called the comments “very insulting,” then dinged Europe for not paying their “fair share” of NATO costs.
Macron made his call for a “real European army” in a French radio interview. “We have to protect ourselves with respect to China, Russia — and even the United States,” he said, Agence France Press reported.
Europe had to be able “to defend itself better alone,” he said, the BBC reported.
Macron said Europe had to think about its own security as the U.S. becomes a “less reliable” ally.
He pointed to Trump’s threat to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, a 1987 arms control agreement with Russia that helped end the Cold War.
Macron said “Europe and its security” would be the “main victim” of such a move.
A French official insisted to CNN that Trump had taken Macron’s words out of context. He also said that Macron himself would likely respond himself to the president Saturday.
The official said Macron was speaking about a military force that would supplement, rather than replace, NATO.
Macron and Trump were planning to meet on Saturday to discuss European security, Syria and Iran, CBS News reported.
Macron also invited world leaders to participate in the Paris Peace Forum to discuss shared global challenges, according to The Washington Post. Trump is skipping that.
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