Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump test their bruised bromance at G7 summit

{"text":[[{"start":12.25,"text":"The tenor of the tumultuous diplomatic relationship between Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump was set almost a decade ago by a fierce handshake at a Bastille Day military parade."}],[{"start":23.1,"text":"The French and US presidents yanked each other close in a test of dominance masked by bonhomie — a dynamic that would recur over Iran, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and trade."}],[{"start":35.35,"text":"Macron will host Trump, alongside other national leaders of the G7 club of wealthy nations, in the alpine resort of Évian-les-Bains starting from Monday in the first such summit since the US launched a war against Iran. "}],[{"start":48.75,"text":"But the “bromance” early in their respective first terms has been eclipsed by a harsher, transactional rapport set by Trump, which has worsened for several reasons, including Macron’s advocating for Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, and criticism of the Iran campaign."}],[{"start":66,"text":"Nevertheless, Paris has tailored the G7 agenda to avoid antagonising the US president so as to hopefully prevent him from blowing it up or leaving early as he did at the G7 in Canada last year. The summit was pushed back by a day so Trump could attend a mixed martial arts fight at the White House on Sunday. "}],[{"start":86.05,"text":"Macron and Trump will also dine together at the opulent palace of Versailles after Évian."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":92.85,"text":"With the wars in Iran and Ukraine set to dominate the talks, the limitations of seeking to placate Trump have become clear for Macron and other European leaders since his return to the White House in 2025. "}],[{"start":105.6,"text":"Viewed from Europe, the US president has undermined the transatlantic relationship by adding tariffs on the EU, threatening to annex Greenland, and sending energy prices soaring by attacking Iran. "}],[{"start":118.35,"text":"Trump views European allies as free-riders on defence and has accused them of shirking responsibility by not helping to alleviate the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the vital artery for oil and gas exports. "}],[{"start":130.54999999999998,"text":"The Élysée Palace said the summit would succeed despite tensions. “The international context is what it is but we’re showing that we can converge on important issues,” a French official said. "}],[{"start":143.2,"text":"Given the changed geopolitical landscape, the risk of clashes is heightened, said Max Bergmann, director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "}],[{"start":152.2,"text":"“In 2025 Europeans were willing to accept the bend-the-knee strategy. Their leaders debasing themselves in front of Trump. They’re less accepting of it in 2026,” Bergmann said. “It’s in certain European leaders’ domestic political interest to pick a fight, to stand up.”"}],[{"start":168.6,"text":"As the European leader who has worked with Trump the longest, Macron sees himself as able to handle the US president. He invited Trump to the grand reopening of Notre-Dame cathedral just before the Washington inauguration, and Trump reciprocated by hosting his French counterpart as the first world leader to visit the White House in his second term. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":191.65,"text":"The pair keep up regular phone calls and texts, something that can help when conflicts flare or also backfire. In January, Trump posted their private messages on social media. In the texts, Macron used a mix of chumminess and directness to try to manage Trump. "}],[{"start":208.6,"text":"“My friend . . . We are totally in line on Syria. We can do great things on Iran. I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland. Let us try to build great things,” Macron wrote, proposing a private dinner and broader talks on Ukraine that would include the Russians. "}],[{"start":225.4,"text":"Macron and Trump have a tough but ultimately respectful relationship behind closed doors, said three European officials who have witnessed multiple private meetings including at previous G7 summits."}],[{"start":237.6,"text":"The French president often weathers jibes and mockery from his US counterpart, such as remarks about his accent when speaking in English, the people said. Trump, for his part, appreciates Macron being clear and consistent in his criticism of White House policy both in private and in public."}],[{"start":254.29999999999998,"text":"That, the people said, underscored the relatively stable relationship between Trump and Macron, in contrast with the often wildly oscillating rhetoric between Trump and other G7 leaders such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer."}],[{"start":271.54999999999995,"text":"“The bromance is gone but there’s a level of something like grudging mutual respect between them in the room,” said one of the officials."}],[{"start":279.74999999999994,"text":"Macron has also been unafraid to contradict Trump, including over funding for Ukraine while sitting beside him in the Oval Office. In the second month of the war in Iran, he publicly chided Trump for giving ever-changing statements on prospects of peace. “This is not a show,” the French president told journalists. “When you want to be serious you don’t say every day the opposite of what you said the day before.” "}],[{"start":303.69999999999993,"text":"Trump seems to relish mocking Macron: he once declared “Emmanuel always gets it wrong” and recently gleefully brought up an infamous episode in which Brigitte Macron appeared to slap her husband in public, saying “his wife treats him very badly”. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":319.6499999999999,"text":"Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe for the Eurasia Group, said it was significant that the direct channel between the US and French presidents had survived so long."}],[{"start":330.49999999999994,"text":"He said: “Macron’s calculation is that he has to work with or around Trump, so he never attacks him and rarely replies when Trump insults him. He does put his foot down occasionally, as we saw over Greenland, but still seems to believe Trump can be manoeuvred to do the right thing.”"}],[{"start":347.54999999999995,"text":"Many global leaders have sought to appeal to Trump with mixed results. Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has cast herself as a “Trump whisperer” given Rome’s staunch pro-Nato positions and her ideological affinity with his Maga movement. Nato boss Mark Rutte referred to Trump as “daddy” and warned Europe not to dream about splitting too much from the US as it re-armed. "}],[{"start":372.24999999999994,"text":"Pedro Sánchez, prime minister of Spain, has emerged as the chief critic by taking strong positions against US support for Israel and resisting pressure to boost military spending. "}],[{"start":383.54999999999995,"text":"Trump is heading into the summit as efforts to strike a deal with Iran hang in the balance. Officials have said one could be signed in the coming days. "}],[{"start":392.04999999999995,"text":"The G7 countries are expected to present a plan drafted by militaries from more than a dozen countries for a mine-clearing mission to help open up the strait. Securing backing for the UK and France-led initiative is a central goal of the summit, said French officials."}],[{"start":407.15,"text":"Manuel Muñiz, a geopolitical analyst from IE University in Madrid, said he doubted progress given the deep rifts in the transatlantic relationship. “Diplomacy based on personal rapport doesn’t really work with Trump.”"}],[{"start":430.4,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1781419792_4320.mp3"}