Emmanuel Macron recently aroused a lively controversy by declaring during a Council of Ministers held on Tuesday that Benjamin Netanyahu “must not forget that his country was created by a UN decision”.
With this assertion, which refers to the 1947 UN resolution, having established the Palestine sharing plan, Macron stressed that, consequently, Israel should not ignore the decisions of the United Nations.
These remarks were not intended to be made public and were said in the camera of the Council of Ministers which was held this Tuesday, but they intervene in a context of tensions in the South Lebanon, where Israel leads military operations against Hezbollah, causing strikes that injured UN helmets.
The French president has considered “unacceptable” that these UN forces were deliberately targeted and expressed his concern in the face of the intensification of Israeli attacks, calling for an immediate cease-fire.
Macron’s declaration could exacerbate the already tense relations between France and Israel, while Netanyahu replied by arguing that the creation of the State of Israel was the result of a military struggle, not a simple UN resolution.
This rise in tensions has significant implications, especially since Macron had already been criticized for his declarations concerning arms deliveries to Israel.
In a context where the two leaders recently called themselves, this Macron position could mark a turning point in Franco-Israeli relations, highlighting the diplomatic challenges in which France faces in this unstable region.
