French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that U.S. strikes against Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend violated international law — even though France shares Washington’s aim of preventing Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
“There is no legality in these strikes, even if France supports the objective of preventing Iran from getting the nuclear bomb,” he said during a press conference alongside Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in Oslo.
While there is “a legitimacy in neutralizing Iran’s nuclear structures,” the French president said, the United States lacked “a legal framework” to do so.
On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the country’s forces had bombed three Iranian nuclear sites, joining Israel in taking military action against Tehran.
Europeans have since called for restraint amid fears of regional escalation in the Middle East while acknowledging the threat posed by Tehran’s nuclear program. Some leaders have sided more firmly with Israel, such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who last week praised the country for doing “the dirty work” of the West in striking Iran.
French officials, meanwhile, have repeatedly said they believe the only way to permanently rein in Iran’s nuclear ambitions is via diplomacy and have pushed for talks in the wake of the Israeli and American strikes.
The French president and NATO leaders are expected to discuss the U.S. strikes on Iran during this week’s NATO summit in the Netherlands.
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