French President Mr Macron and his wife Brigitte were captured in what looked like a lover’s spat as they arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam, at the start of a South East Asia tour
Emmanuel Macron could be seen flinching away from his wife Brigitte as she appeared to smack him in a dramatic moment aboard the French President’s jet.
The French premier and his wife touched down in Hanoi, Vietnam this morning as the two started the first leg of a tour through South East Asia, with the two set to spend three days in the nation before moving onwards to Indonesia and Singapore. Their globetrotting plans seemed to start on a sour note, however, when a video captured what appeared to be Mrs Macron slapping or pushing her husband of nearly 20 years in the face before snubbing him.
READ MORE: Moment Emmanuel Macron’s wife slaps him as he argues during official tour
The video shows Mr Macron wincing away from his wife before composing himself and starting to walk down the stairs and seemingly extending an olive branch.
He holds out his hand to escort Mrs Macron down the steps of the jet gangway, but is quickly brushed away by the 72-year-old, who clings on to the staircase railing instead. The two descend to the bottom of the stairs in silence, with Mr Macron offering brief smiles for onlookers while his wife wore a steely expression.
The video has caused a massive stir, dampening what was meant to be a triumphant tour strengthening French relations with its partners in Asia.
Initially, French media reported that the Elyse denied the authenticity of the video and other images, but later backtracked, confirming they were real but downplaying their significance. The French President explained away the footage as “nothing”, saying he was “bickering, or rather joking” with his wife.
A body language expert has said the interaction appeared anything but “playful”, suggesting instead that the exchange was “genuinely shocking”.
She told the Daily Mail: “This will inevitably be turned into a ‘joke’ by some people but I would call it genuinely shocking and I would say the same if it was any other couple walking down any street, no matter who did it to who.” The expert added that neither Mr or Mrs Macron laughed or teased together after the initial interaction.
She said: “There is no follow-up shared laughter, grins or teasing rituals, Macron performs a “think-on-your-feet” wave before stepping back in towards his wife, but he seems to touch his face too, in a checking gesture.”
The Elysee provided a very different perspective on events, going as far as to suggest they were sharing a “moment of closeness”. A spokesperson said: “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… It was a moment of closeness.”