US President Donald Trump met French President Emmanuel Macron for talks in Paris on Saturday ahead of a weekend of World War 1 commemorations that risk being overshadowed by a row over Macron’s calls for a European army, which Trump has branded “insulting”.
Trump and Macron shook hands on the steps of the Elysee Palace and Trump gave a thumbs-up sign before the two entered talks, during which they will attempt to defuse differences over European defence among other issues.
No sooner had Trump touched down in Paris than he fired off a tweet castigating his host over proposals to endow the EU with its own army.
“President Macron of France has just suggested that Europe build its own military in order to protect itself from the US, China and Russia,” the US president tweeted late Friday, referring to remarks made by Macron three days earlier.
“Very insulting but perhaps Europe should first pay its fair share of NATO, which the US subsidizes greatly!,” he added.
His tweet about Macron’s EU defence proposals which came hours before the two leaders were to hold talks at the Elysee Palace referred to the French leader’s call in an interview Tuesday for a “real European army”.
In the radio interview, Macron said a joint European Union military force was needed to wean Europe off American might, not least after Trump announced he was pulling out of a Cold War-era nuclear treaty.
Referring also to cyber meddling in elections in the West, he said: “We have to protect ourselves with respect to China, Russia and even the United States.”
Macron’s office on Saturday acknowledged that his remarks “could create confusion” but stressed: “He never said we need a European army against the United States.”
On Saturday morning Trump was in more conciliatory form.
“I am in Paris getting ready to celebrate the end of World War One. Is there anything better to celebrate than the end of a war, in particular that one, which was one of the bloodiest and worst of all time?”, he tweeted.
The US leader and his wife Melania are on their second visit to Paris since July 2017 when Trump was Macron’s guest of honour at Bastille Day celebrations in Paris.
The row over European defence came at the start of a weekend of commemorations to be attended by 70 world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
After talks on issues including Syria and Iran, Macron and Trump will be joined by their spouses Melania and Brigitte for lunch.
