Russia mocks Macron over viral clip of him getting 'a right hook' from wife

A viral video shows French first lady Brigitte Macron shoving President Emmanuel Macron as the couple deboarded a plane in Vietnam during the first leg of their Southeast Asia tour on May 25

Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova took a jibe at a viral video showing French President Emmanuel Macron getting his face pushed aside by his wife, Brigitte Macron, as they stepped off a plane during their visit to Southeast Asia.

 

The clip, filmed as the couple arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam, drew widespread attention online.

  French President’s video goes viral

 

In the video, Macron is seen standing at the doorway as the aircraft door opens communicating with his wife Brigitte Macron, who was inside the cabin. As security officials open the gate, Brigitte Macron appears to press her hand against the President's face in what appears to be a quick shove. 

 

 

Seconds later, Macron and his wife, dressed in a red jacket, were seen at the top of the stairs. He held out his arm, but she did not take it. They walked down the carpeted steps next to each other.   

 

‘A right hook from his wife’: Russia’s foreign ministry

 

Writing on Telegram, Zakharova joked that Macron received “a right hook from his wife”.

 

“Did the first lady decide to cheer up her husband with a gentle pat on the cheek and miscalculated her strength? Was she handing him a tissue, but missed? Did she want to fix his collar but ended up reaching the beloved face,” she wrote.

 

“Here’s a hint: maybe it was the ‘hand of the Kremlin’?” she added. 

  Macron’s response to viral clip

 

President Macron responded to the video, saying he had been joking with his wife during that time. “There’s a video showing me joking and teasing my wife and somehow that becomes a sort of geo-planetary catastrophe, with people even coming up with theories to explain it.”

 

Macron said the videos were real but condemned how it had been interpreted. “The videos are all real, and yes, sometimes people tamper with them, but people are attributing all kinds of nonsense to them,” he said.

 

Élysée Palace dismisses speculation

 

The Élysée Palace, at first, denied the incident before later trying to play it down. Élysée Palace is the official residence of the President of the French Republic. A media report quoted an Élysée insider who called it a “moment of togetherness”. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Macron has been leading efforts to reach a consensus on a concerted European response to support Ukraine.