The Iran war requires a serious approach that does not change every day, Emmanuel Macron has said, in an apparent reference to US President Donald Trump's seemingly contradictory remarks about the conflict.
This is not a show. We are talking about war and peace and the lives of men and women, the French president told journalists upon arrival in South Korea for a state visit.
When you want to be serious you don't say every day the opposite of what you said the day before, Macron added.
And maybe you shouldn't be speaking every day. You should just let things quieten down.
Macron was answering questions on the US-Israel war in Iran, which has now entered its second month. France and other European countries have supported some of the US operations in the region, but have so far resisted getting dragged into the war.
Trump and his administration have so far offered mixed messages on the conflict, at various times suggesting that a ceasefire was near, that the war had already been won or that the US was going to fight on.
Macron also addressed Trump's comments in which the US president said he was reconsidering his country's membership of Nato. Alliances like Nato are valuable because of what is unspoken – meaning the trust behind them, Macron said, arguing that casting doubt on one's commitment to the organisation emptied it of its substance.
I feel like there is too much chatter, it's all over the place, he said.
He added he was unwilling to comment on an operation that the US and the Israelis decided on by themselves, stating, They then lament that they are alone in an operation they decided on alone. It's not our operation.
Macron also mentioned the US strikes on Iran in June 2025, which Trump said had obliterated Iranian nuclear facilities. However, in the wake of the February 2026 war the US president said it was the last best chance to strike at Iran's nuclear weapons programme.
I remind you that six months ago were told that everything had been destroyed and all had been sorted out, Macron noted. He argued that international observers were needed to check the nuclear development situation in Iran and a framework to prevent further enriching.
Trump has been on the offensive against France, which he accuses of failing to help in the war on Iran. At a private lunch on Wednesday, Trump mocked Macron by imitating a French accent and mentioning his wife Brigitte in a derogatory manner.
Macron dismissed the comments as neither elegant nor up to standard and stated, I won't respond to them, they don't deserve a reply. Such comments have been poorly received in France, even among Macron's critics.
Tehran has retaliated to the strikes on its territory by closing the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway which enables the passage of a large proportion of the world's energy supply. In the absence of a quick resolution to the closure, Trump has said the countries most affected by the disruption should solve the problem themselves.
Macron pushed back against the idea of a military operation to liberate the strait, calling it unrealistic due to the risks it entails. It would expose anyone crossing the strait to coastal threats from the [Iranian] Revolutionary Guards, who possess significant resources, as well as ballistic missiles, [and] a host of other risks, he said.
