French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, have found themselves at the centre of a social media frenzy after a video surfaced that appeared to show Brigitte pushing her husband’s face as they disembarked from a plane in Vietnam.
The clip, filmed by an Associated Press camera operator, captured the moment in the doorway of the plane during the couple’s official visit to Hanoi.
In the footage, Brigitte’s hand seems to press against Macron’s face and seemingly push him away, causing him to step back before he regains his balance and waves to the crowd.
Almost immediately, the video was picked up by Russian state media and French far-right accounts, who claimed that the French First Lady had slapped the president.
Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, jumped on the bandwagon and said on Telegram that Macron had received “a right hook” and asking whether Brigitte had tried to “cheer up her husband with a gentle pat on the cheek and miscalculated her strength”, as reported by The Guardian.
The video spread quickly online, with conspiracy theorists and meme-makers seizing on the moment.
Macron, however, was quick to play down the incident. Speaking to reporters in Hanoi, he described the gesture as playful, saying, “We were just horsing around, truly joking with my wife”, and insisted, “It’s nothing”, per France 24.
He went on to say that this was just the latest in a string of viral moments that had been blown out of proportion, referencing previous rumours about him sharing a bag of cocaine and tussling with other world leaders.
The Élysée Palace backed up Macron’s account, telling French media that the scene was “a moment of closeness” and simply a case of the couple decompressing before the start of their official visit.
Not everyone is convinced by the official explanation. Body language analyst Judi James, speaking to MailOnline, argued that the gesture did not appear playful.
“I would not describe the gesture we saw from inside the plane as one of ‘play’ as has been claimed,” she said.
James added, “Pushing your partner in the face with your hand so hard their head reels to the side and they need to put a hand out to keep balance, especially with what looks like an extra ‘shove’ at the end of the contact, should not be normalised by calling it ‘fun’ just to save political face.”
She also observed that there was no shared laughter or teasing after the moment, and described Macron’s body language as “angry and tense”, noting that he balled one hand into a fist as he walked onto the tarmac.
Despite the speculation, Macron has insisted that the incident was nothing more than a private, light-hearted exchange between him and his wife. He told reporters, “People have thought I shared a bag of cocaine, tussled with the Turkish president, now that I’m having a domestic dispute with my wife … None of this is true. Everyone needs to calm down,” as quoted by The Guardian.
French officials have also pointed out that the video has been used by Russian-aligned and far-right accounts to fuel disinformation and conspiracy theories, particularly at a time when France has warned of increasing online interference from Russia.
The Macrons were in Vietnam following deals signed on Monday between the two nations regarding Airbus planes, defence and other pacts worth €9bn (approx AUD 15.8bn) as the Macrons embarked on the first formal visit by a French presidential couple to the country’s former colony in nearly a decade.
So, did Brigitte Macron really slap her husband in public? The video does show her hands making contact with his face, but the context and intent are still up for debate. According to the Macrons, it was a playful moment that’s been blown out of proportion. Meanwhile others see something more serious.
Lead image: Getty Images / AP
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