French President Emmanuel Macron has stated that a viral video showing his wife, Brigitte Macron, appearing to push him in the face as they disembarked a plane in Vietnam was simply them “joking around.”
The incident, which occurred as they arrived in Hanoi for a Southeast Asia tour, quickly circulated online, leading to various interpretations. However, Macron, when asked about it by reporters, dismissed the speculation, saying it was a “moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh,” and something they “often do.”
An official from the President’s office also downplayed the event, describing it as a “moment of closeness” and denying it was an argument. Macron further expressed surprise at how the incident was being blown out of proportion, noting it was “nonsense” for it to turn into a “global catastrophe where people are even coming up with theories to explain it.” He also alluded to other recent events that he felt were similarly over-analyzed online.