France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks at the Tokyo Innovation Base (TIB) in Tokyo on April 1, 2026. LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP
French President Emmanuel Macron praised Europe's "predictability" during a visit to Japan on Wednesday, April 1, contrasting it with countries that "could hurt you without even informing you" in an apparent swipe at Donald Trump. The US president lashed out at France on Tuesday, writing on social media that Paris had been "very unhelpful" during the war with Iran, which has since spread across the Middle East.
"I'm well aware that sometimes Europe can be seen as a continent that is slower than others," Macron told an audience of Japanese business leaders and investors in Tokyo. "But predictability has value, and we have demonstrated that over all these past years and, dare I say, even these past weeks: we are where you know we will go," he added. "That's not bad, in times like these, believe me."
Macron criticized countries that said they were "going much faster" than their allies, but "you don't know whether the day after tomorrow they will still be in that position, and whether tomorrow they won't make a decision that could hurt you without even informing you."
