For several weeks, Emmanuel Macron is discreet about the Middle East. This indentation owes nothing to chance: Donald Trump has regained control of the issue, relegating the Europeans, and France in particular, to the background. On Friday, the American president announced the creation of a Peace Council to Gazaintended to structure the international effort to stabilize and reconstruct the Palestinian territory. France should have a seat, without guarantee at this stage. The first meeting must be held at Davos next week. But this possible participation is not enough to mask a broader loss of influence: France is no longer among the leading players in the issue, neither politically nor diplomatically. Since October 7, the French strategy appears muddled. By dint of nuances and backpedaling, the presidential speech loses readability.
Eager to follow the Gaullian, Mitterrandian or Chiraquian lineage, that of France’s Arab policy based on strong statements, Emmanuel Macron opted for a moralist posture. In September, he announced the recognition of the State of Palestine. A declaration without legal significance, strictly symbolic, made almost two years after October 7, and especially on the day of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. The context made this choice explosive: not all the hostages had returned, Hamas remained armed and firmly established in the Gaza Strip, anti-Semitism reached an unprecedented level in France. Added to this was the increase in Aliyah and the uneasiness of French Jews, still shocked by the absence of the president during the great march against anti-Semitism, a year earlier.
Thus, with each presidential initiative on the issue, a nuance immediately reduces its impact. One step forward, one step back. If the recognition of Palestine was intended to be a political signal, why did it not lead to any concrete measures, neither diplomatic sanctions, nor judicial pressure, nor coordinated European initiative against Israel? A week before this announcement, Emmanuel Macron confided, on an Israeli television channel, to having offered to go to Israel, before the government refused. At the same time, he reaffirmed his desire to continue the dialogue with Benjamin Netanyahuwhich he said “respect”. Consistency raises questions. How has this additional recognition advanced peace? How has it changed the situation regarding the departure of Hamas or its demilitarization? As for the international coalition against Hamas, launched with great communication in the fall of 2023, it only exists through a few technical meetings devoted to the financing of the terrorist group.
These successive about-faces have weakened the presidential position
During the summit on Gaza organized in Egypt in October, Donald Trump did not fail to highlight this French marginalization, telling Emmanuel Macron: “You’re keeping a low profile today!” » A remark greeted by laughter from Giorgia Meloni and Keir Starmer. Thierry Mariani, RN MEP, used it to denounce a “comedy” Macronian which, according to him, “no longer a recipe”. Trump, he added, “makes fun of Macron and his obsession with being present at the center of international conferences to give the illusion of being essential”. These successive about-faces have weakened the presidential position, stuck between irreconcilable political oppositions: a left which demands ever more strong gestures in favor of the Palestinian cause and a right which accuses it of weakening the fight against terrorism. Faced with these contradictory pressures, the Head of State intends to maintain his line: working for peace in the Middle East while preserving national unity. For now, we are struggling to see the effects.
