Le Drian tells Trump not to take French domestic politics into account

In the wake of mocking tweets by US President Donald Trump targeting the policies of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, the European country’s foreign minister says Washington should not be meddling into the country’s internal affairs.

“We do not take domestic American politics into account and we want that to be reciprocated,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told LCI television on Sunday.

“I say this to Donald Trump and the French president says it too: leave our nation be.”

The US president recently posted messages on Twitter in regard to the “yellow vest” protest movement in France. He also attacked the Paris climate agreement.

“Very sad day & night in Paris. Maybe it’s time to end the ridiculous and extremely expensive Paris Agreement and return money back to the people in the form of lower taxes?” Trump suggested.

Trump had earlier posted, “The Paris Agreement isn’t working out so well for Paris. Protests and riots all over France.”

Le Drian said President Macron wanted dialogue with protesters and would offer solutions when he addresses the nation early next week. “I think his remarks will be strong enough for the movement to halt, or at least for the hooligans to be put off.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the top French diplomat expressed concern over remarks among some protesters calling for an “insurrection” in France.

“As foreign minister I travel around the world and I know — you can witness it in certain countries — how fragile democracy is,” Le Drian said. “I hear people saying, ‘This is an insurrection’. That is not the republic I know.”

Other French politicians have also responded angrily to Trump’s latest tweets, including Joachim Son-Forget, a lawmaker from Macron’s party, who dubbed the US president “Donald the Senile.”

“DON’T INSULT MY COUNTRY DOTARD,” he posted, employing an antiquated insult previously used against Trump by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

“People do not want to pay large sums of money, much to third world countries (that are questionably run), in order to maybe protect the environment. Chanting ‘We Want Trump!’ Love France.”

French FM slams Trump over bid to destabilize EU

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has blasted US President Donald Trump for what he described as his attempts to destabilize the European Union.

The US president has also recently retweeted one of several posts falsely claiming that French protesters were chanting his name. The videos that have been used to support this claim were in fact filmed at a far-right protest in the British capital, London, earlier this year.

The ongoing protests in France are not directly linked to the Paris climate agreement, which was signed in 2015 and has since been abandoned by Trump.

Police heavily deployed to contain protests across France

A massive police operation starts across France amid huge protest rallies by tens of thousands of “yellow vest” demonstrators.

For several weeks, people in France have been protesting the economic policies of President Macron, who has been labeled as the “president of the rich.” Spurred by rising fuel prices, the protests have grown into a broad movement against Macron’s policies and governing style.

The unrest has inspired similar protests in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Relations have soured between Washington and Paris in recent months mainly over Trump’s rejection of the climate agreement and the hard-fought Iran nuclear deal.

France not US’ vassal state: Macron

French president has hit back at Donald Trump’s recent Twitter attacks, saying that France is not the US’ vassal state.

A fresh row blew up last month after Macron gave an interview calling for a “European army” and arguing that Europe needed to be more independent from the US in its defense policy.