It has been revealed that French President Emmanuel Macron persuaded President Donald Trump not to pullout U.S. soldiers in Syria to enable him launch airstrikes as punishment for the Bashar al-Assad led-government for an alleged chemical weapons attack on his people.
Macron made the confession while appearing in a two-hour live broadcast on French television BFM and online investigative site Mediapart.
The 40-year-old leader said the U.S., Britain and France had “full international legitimacy to intervene” in order to enforce international humanitarian law.
The allies fired missiles early Saturday at three chemical-weapons facilities in Syria to punish the regime for the alleged use of chemical weapons in the town of Douma.
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“It was retaliation, not an act of war,” Macron said in justifying the operation a day before the French parliament was set to debate it.
“The airstrikes marked Macron’s biggest foreign policy yet. Nearly a year into his term, the new president declared France the most active country on the diplomatic field and at the United Nations.
“Ten days ago President Trump wanted the United States of America to withdraw from Syria. We convinced him to remain,” he said, speaking in the majestic room of Chaillot National Theatre, with the Eiffel Tower shining in the background.”
He said France now wants to involve Western powers, Russia and Turkey in a new diplomatic initiative to find a sustainable political solution in Syria.
Macron also offered to play the role of intermediary between the United States and Russia.
