Trump and Macron Meeting: Friendly or Strained?

French President Emmanuel Macron met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Monday to talk about continued support for Ukraine. 

The Details: Macron is the first European leader to visit Trump since his return to office. Trump has recently shifted U.S. policy on Ukraine, and Macron has coordinated the European response to the shift. During the meeting, Macron suggested Europe would provide security guarantees, including peacekeepers, to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire. Trump replied that he would support peacekeepers and that Russian President Vladimir Putin told him he would accept it as well. 

Key Quotes: Macron said he intended to tell Trump it is in the joint interest of Americans and Europeans not to show weakness to Putin during U.S.-led peace negotiations. When Trump said the U.S. paid billions in support of Ukraine, Macron interrupted, “To be frank, we paid 60%.” Trump ended the exchange with, “If you believe that. It’s OK with me.” 

How The Media Covered It: AFP's (Not Rated) headline said “Macron, Trump vow to work together on Ukraine, despite differences,” adding that the meeting had a “friendly tone.” In contrast, The New York Times (Lean Left) said Macron and Trump have a complicated history, pointing out their handshake “both seemed in a lighthearted but pointed way trying to assert masculine dominance.” The right zeroed in on Macron's interruption over who funded Ukraine. The Washington Times (Lean Right) framed Trump and Macron as sparring in its headline despite calling it “an otherwise friendly meeting” and ZeroHedge (Lean Right) said in “an awkward public disagreement” Trump looked “visibly annoyed.”