French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday criticized Donald Trump's mocking comments about his marriage, saying they did not merit a response.
In a video briefly posted by the White House on YouTube, which was later taken down, Trump mocked the French president while he slammed NATO allies for not joining US operations in Iran.
What did Trump say about Macron?
"We didn't need them, but I asked anyway," Trump said.
"I call up France, Macron — whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw," Trump said, in reference to a video from last year that appeared to show Brigitte Macron shoving the French president's face during a trip to Vietnam.
"And I said, 'Emmanuel, we'd love to have some help in the Gulf even though we're setting records on knocking out bad people and knocking out ballistic missiles. We'd love to have some help. If you could, could you please send ships immediately,'" Trump continued.
"No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won," Trump said, mimicking a French accent to give an impression of Macron.
The French president reacted to Trump's comments by saying they were "neither elegant nor up to standard."
"So I am not going to respond to them — they do not merit a response," Macron told reporters.
The French president said that instead, the focus should be on "work towards de-escalation" in the Middle East and a ceasefire.
"There is too much talk, and it's all over the place," the French president said, referring to Trump's war policy.
"We all need stability, calm, a return to peace — this isn't a show!" Macron said.
Trump 'disappointed' with NATO over refusal to join Iran war
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