Emmanuel Macron gave an exceptional interview this Monday morning, 100 days before the Paris Olympic Games. Questioned by the BFMTV and RMC channels, the French president took the opportunity to confirm France’s position regarding the attack launched by Iran against Israel during the night from Saturday to Sunday.
Drone interceptions carried out by France
France carried out “interceptions” of Iranian missiles and drones targeting Israel during the night from Saturday to Sunday at the request of Jordan, confirmed Emmanuel Macron. “We have an air base in Jordan (…) Jordanian airspace was violated by these shots. We took off our planes and we intercepted what we had to intercept,” declared the French president on BFMTV-RMC channels. . By deciding to “strike Israel” from its soil, Iran caused “a profound rupture”, he also estimated.
“We will do everything to avoid conflagration (…) and therefore try to convince Israel that we must not respond by escalating, but rather isolate Iran, succeed in convincing the countries of the region that Iran is a danger, increase sanctions, increase pressure on nuclear activities and then find a path to peace in the region,” he declared.
France speaks “to all the countries in the region (…) What we are trying to be is a mediating power”, added the French president who will speak again during the day to the Israeli Prime Minister. But it is “the Americans who have a very important role to play in containing Iran,” he admitted.
An “Olympic truce”
Emmanuel Macron assured this Monday that he “wants to do everything to have an Olympic truce” during the Paris Olympics which must be “also a diplomatic moment of peace”.
“We want to work towards the Olympic truce and I think that this is an opportunity on which I will try to engage many of our partners”, such as China, whose president “is coming to Paris in a few weeks”, he said on BFMTV-RMC channels.
The opening ceremony of the Olympic Games could be “limited to the Trocadéro”
In the event of a terrorist threat, the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games, scheduled for the Seine on July 26, could be “limited to the Trocadéro”, or even “repatriated to the Stade de France”, also declared Emmanuel Macron on BFMTV and RMC.
“This opening ceremony” along the Seine, “is a first in the world. We can do it and we will do it,” said the president in an interview to mark the countdown to 100 days of OJ. But “there are plans B and even plans C”, “and we prepare them in parallel”, “we will do a real-time analysis” of the risks, he added.
“Confidence” in unions regarding strike threats
Emmanuel Macron said Monday on BFMTV and RMC his “confidence” in the unions and their “spirit of responsibility” while some like the CGT and FO have filed strike notices for the period of the Olympic Games this summer.
“France is a team, it is a united nation and therefore we are meeting this exemplary nature,” he said. “And I have confidence in the unions. They have a spirit of responsibility, they will be at our side,” he pleaded.