The Telegraph Macron hits out at Trump for Brigitte insult French leader also claims US president’s calls for European intervention in Hormuz are unrealistic - James Crisp Europe Editor - Published 02 April 2026 12:53pm BST

 The Telegraph

Macron hits out at Trump for Brigitte insult

French leader also claims US president’s calls for European intervention in Hormuz are unrealistic

James Crisp

Europe Editor 

Published 02 April 2026 12:53pm BST

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Emmanuel Macron has criticised Donald Trump after the US president mocked him for being shoved by his wife.

In a speech in which he attacked Nato allies for not joining the Iran war, Mr Trump said Brigitte Macron had treated the French president “extremely badly” and that Mr Macron was “still recovering from the right to the jaw”.

Mr Macron said Mr Trump’s reference to a 2025 video that showed Mrs Macron shoving her husband in the face was “not elegant, nor up to standard”.

He said the White House’s call for allies to take military action in the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed by Iran, were “unrealistic”, adding: “It is not our operation.”

The US and Israel started the war on Feb 28 without consulting allies, he said, adding: “They then complain that they are not being helped in an operation they decided on alone.”

He said Mr Trump could not keep “contradicting” himself every day on Iran.

In a prime-time speech on Wednesday night, Mr Trump told the American people that the “hard part is done” and said he was “very close” to ending the war.

He urged allies to “take the lead” in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, telling them to “build up some delayed courage”.

Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, stressed the “urgent need” to reopen the strait on Thursday, as she convened a meeting of some 40 countries on the vital shipping route. She said Iran’s “recklessness” in blockading the waterway was “hitting our global economic security”.

On Wednesday, the US president told The Telegraph that Nato was a “paper tiger”.

He said he was reconsidering American membership of the military alliance after allies rejected his demand that warships be sent to reopen the waterway, which serves as a conduit for about a fifth of the world’s oil.

Mr Macron said those comments risked undermining Nato, which has guaranteed European security since 1949.

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During the speech, Mr Trump claimed he had asked Mr Macron to send French warships to the Gulf, saying he had urged France to deploy vessels “immediately” but that the president had refused, offering instead to help “once the war is won”.

Mr Trump said: “No, no, I don’t need them when the war is over, Emmanuel.”

Before he described calling Mr Macron, Mr Trump mentioned Mrs Macron and the shoving incident last year, which went viral on social media at the time.

Mr Macron told reporters in South Korea during a state visit to Seoul: “I am not going to respond to them [the comments] – they do not deserve a response. What we must do is work towards de-escalation, a ceasefire, and the resumption of negotiations.

“We are talking about matters of grave importance – we are talking about war, about the men and women fighting on the front line, about the men, women and civilians who are being killed.”

Donald Trump, pictured with Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron at the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in 2024 Credit: Regine Mahaux/WireImage

Mr Macron said the war would not resolve the issue of Tehran’s nuclear programme, and that only “in-depth negotiations” could.

“Targeted military action, even for a few weeks, will not allow us to resolve the nuclear issue in the long term.

“If there is no framework for diplomatic and technical negotiations, the situation could deteriorate again within a few months or a few years.”

Mr Macron has largely been spared the worst of Mr Trump’s ire as traditional US allies recoil from the war in the Middle East. The pair have enjoyed a frank relationship in the past, with Mr Macron standing up to the US president while maintaining a steady line of communication.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump has reserved particular scorn for Sir Keir Starmer, criticising his leadership and the Royal Navy, which he has described as made up of “toys” and non-existent.

Iran warns of more ‘crushing’ attacks

Mr Trump’s speech to the nation failed to reassure the markets, which fell to put further pressure on the US. Iran responded by warning that it would carry out more “crushing” attacks.

Tehran fired more missiles at Israel and Gulf Arab states on Thursday morning, demonstrating Tehran’s continued ability to strike its neighbours. Telegraph analysis found that Iran’s attacks have stabilised, with the US and Israel unable to suppress the fire completely.

Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, also criticised Mr Trump’s threats to withdraw from Nato, saying: “The threat of Nato’s break-up, easing sanctions on Russia, a massive energy crisis in Europe, halting aid for Ukraine and blocking the loan for Kyiv by Orbán – it all looks like Putin’s dream plan,” he said.

Mr Tusk alluded to soaring energy costs in Europe as a result of the war and reports that Mr Trump had threatened to scrap aid for Ukraine unless Europe entered the conflict.

Austria became the latest country on Thursday to refuse US requests to fly over its territory for the Iran war.

The Kremlin issued a statement in response to Mr Trump’s Telegraph interview, describing Nato as a “hostile alliance” and adding that Russia stood ready to assist the US president in ending his war on Tehran.