France and Israel at odds over ceasefire

French President Emmanuel Macron stressed the need for a ceasefire during a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This discussion aimed to clarify positions between the two nations after President Macron’s recent statements on stopping arms deliveries to Israel.

Macron expressed his “unwavering commitment” to Israel’s security while affirming his belief that “the time for a ceasefire has now come” in Gaza and Lebanon. The Élysée reported these remarks, emphasizing the importance of a pause in the fighting.

In response, Benjamin Netanyahu requested “support” from France and not “restrictions”, expressing his disapproval of Macron’s position. The conversation dealt “in complete frankness” with the situation in the Middle East, indicating a certain distance between the two leaders on this sensitive subject.

Despite their differences of opinion, the two leaders expressed their mutual respect and their desire to be understood by each other, thus strengthening the friendship between France and Israel. Netanyahu notably presented Israeli operations against Hezbollah as a chance to “change the reality in Lebanon” to improve stability in the region.

Macron’s statements had previously irritated Netanyahu, notably when he stressed that the priority must be “a political solution” and the end of deliveries of weapons for the fighting, while specifying that France does not participate in this armament. According to the Élysée, Macron declared that “attacks against Israel must stop, whether they are carried out by Iran or its auxiliaries” in the region.