French President Emmanuel Macron’s office has dismissed an incident in which his wife, Brigitte, appeared to push him as they arrived in Vietnam, calling it a moment of “closeness” and laughter.
The incident, captured on video, showed Brigitte Macron seemingly shoving her husband before he disembarked from the presidential plane on Sunday. The push caused him to step back momentarily before he regained his composure and waved to the cameras.
Brigitte Macron remained briefly out of view behind the plane’s fuselage. The couple then descended the steps together.
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An Elysee official denied any suggestion of an argument between the couple, who have been married since 2007. “It was a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh,” the official said. “It was a moment of closeness.”
Macron’s visit to Vietnam, the first by a French president in nearly a decade, is aimed at strengthening France’s influence in its former colony.
Vietnam, with its export-oriented economy, has made trade concessions to the U.S. to avoid potential tariffs of 46%. However, the European Union is concerned that Vietnam’s increased purchases of American goods could negatively impact European exports.
U.S. President Donald Trump had previously threatened to impose 50% tariffs on imports from the European Union but later softened his stance, setting a new deadline of July 9 for trade talks between Washington and Brusselss.
