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Emmanuel Macron
Iran has allowed two French former detainees, Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, to leave the country, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday. They had been holed up in French diplomatic premises there since their release from prison. "CEcile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on route toward French territory, after three and a half years of detention in Iran," Macron tweeted. The green light for them to leave Iran, long sought by France, signalled how Iran is differentiating between nations, treating some favourably and others as foes, in the context of the Iran war. Macron has distanced France from the conflict, saying his country wasn't consulted in advance about the US-Israel strikes and didn't want the war. Macron thanked Oman for playing a mediation role. "It's a relief for us all and obviously for their families," Macron wrote.
French President Emmanuel Macron and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung agreed on Friday to work together to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and ease global economic uncertainties caused by the war in the Middle East. Their summit in Seoul came as US President Donald Trump slammed allies for not supporting the US and Israeli war against Iran. Macron was making his first visit to South Korea since taking office in 2017 as part of an Asian tour that already has taken him to Japan. Macron told Lee at the start of the meeting that the two countries can play a role in helping to stabilise the situation in the Middle East, including the Strait of Hormuz, according to South Korean media. At a joint televised briefing afterwards, Macron underscored the need for France and South Korea to cooperate to help reopen the strait and de-escalate Middle East animosities, while Lee said the two affirmed "their resolve to cooperate to secure the safe shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz." The tw
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday said France considers it "unrealistic" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz through a military operation. "There are people who advocate the idea of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz by force, through a military operation, a position that has at times been expressed by the United States," Macron told reporters during a visit to South Korea. "That has never been the option we have chosen, and we consider it unrealistic." Macron said a military operation "would take an infinite amount of time and would expose anyone passing through the strait to coastal threats from (Iran's) Revolutionary Guard, who has capabilities, ballistic missiles and many other risks." The reopening of the Strait "can only be done in coordination with Iran," through negotiations that would follow a potential ceasefire, Macron said. France is pushing for an international mission involving European and non-European nations to escort oil and gas tankers and reopen the Str
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met French President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of theG7 Foreign Ministers' Summit here and said he valued the discussion and his many insights. The external affairs minister paid a formal visit to President Macron on Friday. "An honour to call on the President @EmmanuelMacron of France last night," Jaishankar said in a social media post on Saturday. The external affairs minister said he conveyed the warm greetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Value the discussion and his many insights," Jaishankar added. He arrived in Abbaye des Vaux-de-Cernay in France on Thursday to participate in the two-day G7 foreign ministers' meeting with partner countries. While India is not a G7 member, it has been invited as a partner country by France, the current chair of the powerful bloc. In an address at a G7 foreign ministers' meeting in France on Thursday, Jaishankar flagged the concerns of Global South nations over energy, food, and fuel securi
French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday said his country is ready to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, but only as part of a mission separate from the current Middle East war. "We are not a party to the conflict, and therefore France will never take part in operations to reopen or liberate the Strait of Hormuz," Macron said, responding to US President Donald Trump's call for European nations to send warships to the Persian Gulf. Speaking ahead of a security meeting at the Elysee presidential palace, he stressed any mission would require "discussions and de-escalation with Iran" and must be "entirely separate from the ongoing military operations and bombings".
France's government is bolstering the country's military presence in the Middle East, dispatching its aircraft carrier and other warships, while President Emmanuel Macron engages with key players in the conflict, including Iran, in a bid to position Paris for future diplomatic talks. Macron said that France's military involvement is strictly "defensive" and aims to avoid making the country a party to the war. He reaffirmed that position after one French soldier was killed Thursday in a drone attack in Iraq. "We are not at war with anyone," Macron said. Still, the large-scale deployment of the French navy - which he described as "unprecedented" - has made France the European nation with the most prominent presence in the region. Visiting the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier last week, Macron said that its presence in the Mediterranean demonstrates "France's strength: a balancing power, a force for peace." Here's what to know about Macron' strategy. France's large naval ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron and discussed shared concerns over the evolving situation in West Asia, and the need for a return to dialogue and diplomacy. After his telephonic conversation with Macron, Modi said they will continue to engage closely and coordinate efforts towards the early restoration of peace and stability in the region. "Spoke with my friend President Emmanuel Macron today. We discussed our shared concerns over the evolving situation in West Asia and the need for a return to dialogue and diplomacy. "We will continue to engage closely and coordinate efforts towards the early restoration of peace and stability in the region," Modi said in a post on X. The conflict in West Asia began after the US and Israel launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks targeting Israeli and American ..
French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday ordered France's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to move from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean to help protect allied assets during the ongoing war in the Middle East. Macron said the Charles de Gaulle will be escorted by its air wing, and its escorting frigates. In a pre-recorded speech on French TV, Macron added that Rafale fighter jets, air-defence systems, and airborne radar systems have been deployed over the past few hours in the Middle East. "And we will continue this effort as much as necessary," Macron said. He cited Monday's strike on a British air force base on Cyprus, adding that Cyprus was a member of the European Union with which France has recently signed a strategic partnership. "This requires our support. That is why I have decided to send additional air-defense assets there as well, along with a French frigate, the Languedoc, which will arrive off the coast of Cyprus later this evening," Macron said.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced Monday that France will increase its number of nuclear warheads from the current level of below 300, but did not give a figure for the increase. It will be the first time France increases its nuclear arsenal since at least 1992. "I have decided to increase the numbers of warheads of our arsenal," Macron said at a military base at L'Ile Longue in northwestern France that hosts the country's ballistic missile submarines. Macron's speech was aimed at spelling out how French nuclear weapons fit into Europe's security amid concerns raised on the continent by recurring tensions with US President Donald Trump.
Britain, France and Germany said they are ready to work with the US and partners to help stop Iran's retaliatory attacks. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a joint statement Sunday that they are "appalled" by Iran's "reckless" strikes on their allies, which are threatening their service members and citizens in the region. "We will take steps to defend our interests and those of our allies in the region, potentially through enabling necessary and proportionate defensive action to destroy Iran's capability to fire missiles and drones at their source. We have agreed to work together with the US and allies in the region on this matter," the statement said. It did not provide further details.