Emmanuel Macron arrived Friday, December 2, in New Orleans, where he concludes his state visit to the United States. The day after a lavish reception at the White House, which sealed ” friendship “ of the French President with his American counterpart, the Head of State came to promote the Francophonie in this city of Louisiana emblematic of Franco-American ties. Once French, New Orleans, located in the southeastern United States, was sold by Napoleon Bonaparte to young America in 1803.
The French president also spoke with the boss of Twitter, Elon Musk, in particular about moderation on the social network, bought recently by the billionaire.
After a welcome to the sound of jazz on the tarmac of the airport, he agreed, with his wife, Brigitte Macron, a walkabout in the French Quarter, the very lively historic city center, where rockets ” Welcome Sir “In french in the text.
During an improvised press briefing, Emmanuel Macron hailed “a land of creolization” “where French is loved, is expected”. Its promotion was also one of the goals of the visit of the Head of State, who announced, from the New Orleans Art Museum, the plan « French for All ». The program aims to “expand and develop” the teaching of the French language in the United States, “from kindergarten to higher education”in order to make its practice less “elitist”. French must become “a language of cultural and economic opportunities”underlined the President of the Republic.
A “frank discussion” with Elon Musk
Before this speech, and in all discretion, Emmanuel Macron met Elon Musk, with whom he claimed on Twitter to have had a “clear and frank discussion”. He insisted that the social network, which is now owned by the American billionaire, make « efforts » in terms of transparency and content moderation.
Transparent user policies, significant reinforcement of content moderation and protection of freedom of speech: eff… https://t.co/C04FwWTHVL
“Transparent terms of use, significant reinforcement of content moderation and protection of freedom of expression: Twitter must make the effort to comply with European regulations”insisted the head of state, who did not answer questions from the press about this surprise meeting.
In a series of tweets, he also said he spoke with the Tesla founder about “future green industrial projects, such as the production of electric vehicles and batteries”, without further details. Elon Musk said to himself in response « impatient » about “exciting projects in France”without going into more detail.
The French president had previously spoken with the governor of Louisiana, John Bel Edwards, to discuss the issue of climate change in particular and, according to the Elysée, “strengthening relationships [avec la Louisiane] in the energy sector” – this State is a major exporter of liquefied natural gas.
“Resilience” after Hurricane Katrina
Accompanied by film director Claude Lelouch and dancer and choreographer Benjamin Millepied, Emmanuel Macron was also to meet players in the cultural life of New Orleans, the cradle of jazz. “We have a story in New Orleans and important things to say there that relate to both our story and what we want to do next”, underlined the Elysée. The Head of State therefore had to “celebrating a Franco-American heritage”but also “paying homage to the resilience of a great American city” bereaved by Hurricane Katrina, which killed more than 1,800 people and caused billions of dollars in damage in 2005.
The day before, during a visit overflowing with diplomatic affection, Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden had displayed their unity on Ukraine, demonstrating their desire to seek a solution to the war together. They also softened their positions on the economic disputes that had punctuated the preparation of their tete-a-tete in the Oval Office, in particular the government plan Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), accused in Europe of favoring American companies in defiance of the free competition.
“Before I set foot in the dish”the question of the impact of this American climate plan on European industries was not “not a debate”neither in France nor in the United States, affirmed, Friday, in Louisiana the head of the State. “Now everyone is talking about it, it’s a good thing. »
For its part, the White House clarified that there were no plans to return to the US Congress to obtain changes to the IRA. “For any landmark legislation like the IRA, there is a complex implementation and process that is going on in federal agencies”said spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre, adding however that“there are ways to respond to Europe’s concerns”. Emmanuel Macron counts, him, that the question of « exemptions » demanded for European industries either “settled” by the first quarter of 2023.