What Netanyahu told Macron in Paris
French President Emmanuel Macron’s warm welcome in Paris of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shouldn’t fool Jerusalem; France will continue to criticize settlement construction and continue the quest for the two-state solution.
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron got a fair share of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s time on July 16. The two men participated in a ceremony marking 75 years since the Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup of French Jews during World War II. They then had a two-hour meeting at the Elysee Palace.
The parameters of the Netanyahu-Macron Elysee rendezvous resembled those of Macron’s July 5 meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas: a face-to-face meeting followed by declarations to the press. The media were there to record and publish only; no questions were allowed. The same was true with Netanyahu. Macron read his statement, Netanyahu said what he had to say. End of story.
