Hesitation over the significance of the umpteenth display of bravado by the president of the United States? Disbelief? Astonishment? On Wednesday, February 5, French political leaders didn't rush to react to Donald Trump's proposal to empty the Gaza Strip of its population and turn it into a territory run by the US.

The leading figure among them, President Emmanuel Macron, reacted late on Wednesday. After a call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, the two leaders said in a statement issued by the French presidency that any "forced displacement of the Palestinian population in Gaza or in the West Bank would be unacceptable. It would be a serious violation of international law, an obstacle to the two-state solution and a major destabilizing force for Egypt and Jordan."

In a statement issued on Wednesday morning, the French Foreign Ministry's spokesperson had simply reiterated, without quoting the American president, France's opposition to "any forced displacement of the Palestinian population of Gaza, which would constitute a serious violation of international law, an attack on the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians, but also a major obstacle to the two-state solution and a major destabilizing factor for our close partners Egypt and Jordan, as well as for the region as a whole."

"The future of Gaza must be seen not in the perspective of control by a third state, but within the framework of a future Palestinian state, under the aegis of the Palestinian Authority," added the Foreign Ministry. "Hamas must be disarmed and have no part in the governance of this territory. France will continue to mark its opposition to colonization, which is contrary to international law, and to any desire for unilateral annexation of the West Bank."

Likely to 'exacerbate violence'

Following the cabinet meeting, government spokeswoman Sophie Primas more directly condemned Trump's statements as "dangerous for stability and for the peace process." Former prime minister Gabriel Attal, leader of the Renaissance presidential party, preferred not to react to Trump's remarks. Marc Fesneau, the parliamentary leader of Prime Minister Bayrou's MoDem party, denounced at the Assemblée Nationale "an administration that chooses the rule of the strongest and disregards all common rules and the most fundamental right of peoples to self-determination." But the entourage of Bayrou was inclined to see a negotiating technique behind Trump's remarks. "We know his technique: He always asks for Mars in order to get a piece of Earth," said a source at the prime minister's office.

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