Paris, France. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said he would summon the US ambassador to France over comments about the killing of a French far-right activist last week. He said he would also raise US sanctions against former European Commissioner Thierry Breton and International Criminal Court judge Nicolas Guillou.
Summoning of US ambassador
Barrot said on Sunday that he would summon US Ambassador to France Charles Kushner over comments on the killing of French far-right activist Quentin Deranque.
“We refuse all political opportunism around this drama, which is the bereavement of a French family,” Barrot said in an interview with France Info, France Inter and Le Monde.
Sanctions on Breton and Guillou
Barrot said he would raise US sanctions against former European Commissioner Thierry Breton and French judge at the International Criminal Court Nicolas Guillou, describing the measures as attacks on the autonomy of European Union decision making and the independence of the international justice system.
The Tribune reported on Saturday night that French President Emmanuel Macron had written to US President Donald Trump asking him to lift the sanctions against Breton and Guillou.
Death of Quentin Deranque and US reaction
Deranque was beaten to death in a fight with alleged hard-left activists, an incident that shocked the nation and was described as “France’s Charlie Kirk moment,” a reference to last year’s shooting of the US conservative activist.
The US Embassy in France and the US State Department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism said they were monitoring the case and warned on social media that “violent radical leftism was on the rise” and should be treated as a public safety threat.
What do you think the diplomatic impact will be of France summoning the US ambassador over the comments?
