Macron interrupts as Trump says ‘Europe merely loaning money to Ukraine’

They hugged, they gripped hands, they touched knees and they backslapped. But they did not agree on everything.

French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump rekindled the most touchy-feely bromance in world politics as they met on Monday (February 24, 2025) for talks on Ukraine.

The pair have a long history of public displays of affection dating back to Mr. Trump’s first term in power — and as Mr. Macron returned for Trump 2.0, it seemed like another lovefest.

But as they met in the Oval Office, tensions over Mr. Trump’s sudden pivot to Russia over the Ukraine war bubbled up to the surface, even if Mr. Macron softened the blow with yet another physical gesture.

The French President — unusually for any visitor to the Oval Office — interrupted his 78-year-old counterpart when Mr. Trump repeated a false claim that Europe was merely loaning Ukraine money and would get it back.

“No, in fact, to be frank,” said Mr. Macron, touching his U.S. counterpart’s arm to stop him mid-sentence, “We paid 60 percent of the total effort and it was — like the U.S. — loans, guarantees, grants.”

Mr. Trump smirked and said after Mr. Macron spoke: “If you believe that, it’s ok with me.”

‘Smart customer’

But while they don’t see eye to eye on Ukraine, they still only seem to have eyes for each other.

“He’s a smart customer,” said Mr. Trump, tapping Mr. Macron affectionately on the upper arm after telling a story about a meeting in Paris, when he discovered that what the French leader had been saying in his native tongue about a trade deal was not what he had told him.

Mr. Macron responded by gripping Mr. Trump’s hand and they laughed together, with the 47-year-old even appearing to wipe a tear of mirth from the corner of his eye.

On the way into the West Wing, they shared an embrace and another crushing handshake.

Then in their joint press conference, they broke off after their opening statements to share yet another grip and grin, before heaping compliments on each other.

Mr. Macron hailed their “friendship from your first term” while Trump lavished praise on the Frenchman for the restoration of the fire-damaged Notre-Dame cathedral.

“Say hello to your beautiful wife,” Mr. Trump said at the end of the press conference.

International diplomacy is always heavy with symbolism, but Mr. Macron and Mr. Trump have always been unusually blatant in the way they use body language as a power play.

Since they first met, Mr. Macron has appeared keen to resist Mr. Trump’s habit of using overbearing handshakes to put other world leaders — both literally and figuratively — off-balance.

‘Friendly but firm’

The mother of all handshakes came when they met for the first time in Brussels in 2017, the year they both started their first presidential terms.

Grimacing with effort, the much younger Mr. Macron grabbed Mr. Trump’s hand until the U.S. president was forced — twice — to release his grip.

Photos showed white finger marks on Mr. Trump’s hands left by Mr. Macron’s intense palming.

Their charm offensive continued a year later when Mr. Trump took Mr. Macron’s hand and practically dragged him into the Oval Office in 2018.

But Mr. Macron’s bromantic overtures failed to persuade Mr. Trump to stay in the Paris climate agreement and an international deal with Iran to limit its nuclear program.

The relationship cooled during Mr. Trump’s wilderness years, but Macron was quick to strike after his reelection in November 2024.

Mr. Trump was delighted to be invited to attend the reopening of the Notre-Dame cathedral in December, an early reintroduction to the world stage.

True to form, the leaders engaged in yet another muscular, awkward handshake — this time lasting a full 17 seconds.

British journalist Piers Morgan, a long-term friend of Mr. Trump, said their latest display at the White House showed that Mr. Macron knew what he was doing.

“No world leader handles Trump as well as Macron. Friendly but firm, respectful but not afraid to stand up to him when he thinks he’s wrong. And Trump respects him for it,” Mr. Morgan said on X.

Macron warns Ukraine peace can’t mean ‘surrender’, after Trump talks

French President Emmanuel Macron warned Monday (February 24, 2025) that peace cannot mean the “surrender” of Ukraine, but said talks with Mr. Trump had shown a path forward despite fears of a transatlantic rift.

Meeting at the White House on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, the two leaders said there was progress on the idea of sending peacekeepers to Ukraine, although Mr. Macron insisted on U.S. security guarantees for Kyiv.

Their talks came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for peace “this year” as he met European leaders in Kyiv — amid mounting fears that Mr. Trump is pivoting towards Russia’s stance.

Early Tuesday (February 25, 2025), air raid sirens sounded across Ukraine as authorities warned of a wide missile attack.

They later reported at least five people were wounded and multiple buildings were damaged.

Authorities in neighbouring Poland said they scrambled military aircraft in response to the missile attack.

At the United Nations, the United States sided with Russia twice on Monday (February 24, 2025), as Washington sought to avoid any condemnation of Moscow’s invasion of its pro-Western neighbour.

“This peace cannot mean the surrender of Ukraine,” Mr. Macron told a joint news conference with Mr. Trump.

Mr. Macron said Mr. Trump had “good reason” to re-engage with Russian President Vladimir Putin but said it was critical for Washington to offer “backup” for any European peacekeeping force.

The French president said he would work with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who visits the White House on Thursday (February 27, 2025), on a proposal to send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event of a deal.

“After speaking with President Trump, I fully believe there is a path forward,” said Mr. Macron.

‘End it within weeks’

The French president rushed to Washington after Mr. Trump sent shock waves around the world when he declared his readiness to resume diplomacy with Russia and hold talks to end the Ukraine war without Kyiv.

Mr. Trump’s recent embrace of Russia has sparked fears not only that it could spell the end of U.S. support for Kyiv, but for the rest of Europe too.

The U.S. president said Monday (February 24, 2025) he was confident of bringing an end to the war, and that he expected Mr. Zelenskyy at the White House in the next two weeks to sign a deal granting Washington access to Ukraine’s rare minerals.

“I think we could end it within weeks — if we’re smart. If we’re not smart, it will keep going,” Mr. Trump said earlier in the Oval Office alongside Mr. Macron.

Mr. Macron later agreed that a truce was possible in “weeks,” in an interview with Fox News’s Bret Baier.

Mr. Trump meanwhile added that Mr. Putin was ready to “accept” European troops deployed in Ukraine as guarantors of a deal to end fighting.

But billionaire tycoon Mr. Trump repeated his demands that Europe bears the burden for future support of Ukraine, and that the U.S. recoups the billions of dollars in aid it has given Kyiv.

He also declined to call Mr. Putin a dictator — despite calling Mr. Zelenskyy one last week — or to comment on the U.N. resolutions.

For his part, Mr. Putin has been biding his time since his ice-breaking call with Mr. Trump less than two weeks ago.

Mr. Putin said in an interview with state television Monday (February 24, 2025) that European countries can “participate” in talks to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, his first sign of flexibility on the issue.

‘Decisive break’

Sanctions-hit Moscow is meanwhile also eying the economic side, just as Mr. Trump is. Mr. Putin said Monday (February 24, 2025) that U.S. and Russian companies were “in touch” on joint economic projects — including strategic minerals in occupied Ukraine.

Mr. Putin added in his interview with state television that Mr. Zelenskyy was becoming a “toxic figure” in Ukraine — in comments that have been echoed by Mr. Trump.

Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin are eyeing a possible meeting in the coming weeks in Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Zelenskyy, who has said he would step down in exchange for peace with a guarantee that Ukraine could join NATO, called on Monday (February 24, 2025) for a “real, lasting peace” this year.

Mr. Putin’s decision to launch the invasion in February 2022 set off the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II, leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides and of Ukrainian civilians.

Mr. Trump has however accused Ukraine of starting the war, as he rapidly moves to abandon Democratic predecessor Joe Biden’s support for Kyiv.

The Republican spelled things out on Monday (February 24, 2025), saying he was making a “decisive break” with traditional U.S. foreign policy which he called “very foolish.”

In a sign of Washington’s pivot, the U.S. sided with Moscow and North Korea as it pushed its own language in a vote in the U.N. General Assembly that declined to blame Russia for the war.

The United States then hailed a “landmark agreement” with Russia after the U.N. Security Council later adopted a U.S. resolution that also contained no criticism of Moscow’s aggression.