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Speaking at the UN General Assembly, Macron said the situation in Gaza had exposed the gap between diplomatic claims and realities on the ground.
French President Emmanuel Macron addresses the 81st United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. (AFP photo)
French President Emmanuel Macron used his final address to the United Nations on Tuesday to challenge US President Donald Trump’s claims that peace had been achieved in Gaza, questioning what that peace meant while humanitarian access remained blocked.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly, Macron said the situation in Gaza had exposed the gap between diplomatic claims and realities on the ground.
His remarks came hours after Trump used the same podium to hail his Gaza peace plan as a diplomatic success.
‘What Credibility Do We Have?’
Macron recalled that several countries had recognised Palestine a year earlier, but said recognition alone could not address the crisis.
“A year ago, here in this very hall, about a dozen states had recognized Palestine. I hear the cynicism of some people: ‘Recognition is just a piece of paper, look at the reality,’” he said.
“But what credibility do we have if we continue to remain inactive in the face of Gaza? Some boast of a supposed peace. But that peace has not reopened humanitarian access for a single second. Are we simply to stand by and watch this spectacle that should shame us all?”
Trump had earlier said, “One year ago, when I addressed the great leaders in this hall, the war in Gaza was still raging brutally. A few weeks later, we ended the war in Gaza, saving untold thousands of lives.”
Macron Warns Over West Bank
Macron also turned his attention to the occupied West Bank, where he said violations were continuing.
“Look at what is happening in the West Bank, where every day violations are committed. In whose name? Hamas has never operated in the West Bank,” he said.
“What is happening there is building, day by day, the impossibility of a project that should be based on respect for the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to exist.”
He also warned that actions against Israel’s neighbours would not improve its security. “They are weakening Israel’s security, both today and in the future,” Macron said.
‘Long Live the United Nations’
In his final UN speech before leaving office next year, Macron also warned against what he called a return to the “law of the jungle”.
“The question put to us, in very simple terms, is whether we want to live in this state of nature, with a kind of return to the law of the jungle, or in a civilized international society,” he said.
“My message is to stand firm. Do not yield to the situation which is developing…The rhetoric of defeat that is giving way to abuse of power by empires, threatening the sovereignty of some nations.”
On the Ukraine war, Macron called for a moratorium on attacks on civilian and energy infrastructure.
“We’ve seen the destruction of civilian infrastructure, human rights violations. It’s a new era of barbaric acts,” he said.
“We must protect the civilian population, and this is why we’d like to express our support for a double moratorium, a moratorium on strikes on energy and civilian infrastructure.”
Macron ended his address with a clear defence of the UN system: “Our duty, more than ever, is to stand alongside the United Nations. We cannot accept the new order of impunity that some would like to build.”
He concluded: “Long Live the United Nations!”
(With inputs from agencies)
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Ask News18French President Emmanuel Macron criticized Donald Trump’s claims of achieving peace in Gaza during his UN address, questioning how peace could be claimed while humanitarian access remained blocked and highlighting the gap between diplomatic statements and ground realities.
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