Former European commissioner slams US envoy for skipping summons from French Foreign Ministry

ISTANBUL

Former European Commissioner Thierry Breton criticized the US ambassador to France on Tuesday after he failed to attend a summons at the French Foreign Ministry following remarks related to the death of a nationalist activist.

US Ambassador Charles Kushner did not appear at the Quai d’Orsay on Monday as scheduled.

Speaking on BFMTV/RMC, Breton said the ambassador appeared to prefer meeting with far-right leaders Jordan Bardella and Marine Le Pen rather than Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.

“That’s his choice,” Breton said, adding: “If he does it, he undoubtedly has his reasons. We can only hope he knows what he’s doing.”

Breton further alleged that the ambassador had openly expressed support for France’s far-right National Rally party.

“He has said it and he accepts it, he is there to support and develop the National Rally in France. He says it very explicitly,” Breton noted.

Breton also referred to what he described as a US national security document suggesting Washington intended to rely on far-right parties in Europe to weaken European institutions.

The diplomatic tensions follow comments from US officials condemning what they described as “far-left” political violence after the killing of Quentin Deranque, a 23-year-old nationalist activist who was beaten to death in Lyon, France.

The US administration called for those responsible to be brought to justice.

Breton, however, stressed the importance of maintaining stable diplomatic channels between Paris and Washington.

“I am committed to peaceful relations with the United States,” he said, emphasizing that official communication should take place through established diplomatic channels.

Meanwhile, French media strongly criticized the development.

According to Le Monde, the US ambassador to France, who took up his post last summer, had already been summoned to the Foreign Ministry at the end of August over comments Paris considered unacceptable, including criticism of President Emmanuel Macron for what was described as a “lack of sufficient action” against antisemitism.

At that time, as well, Kushner did not personally attend the meeting at the Quai d’Orsay.

Le Figaro described it as a breach of diplomatic protocol, stressing that the ambassador failed to attend despite a formal summons from the Quai d’Orsay.

HuffPost France emphasized the anger within French official circles, reporting that the ambassador’s absence risked deepening tensions and potentially prompting further diplomatic steps by Paris.

International broadcaster France 24 described the situation as an escalation, noting that the restriction on Kushner’s direct access to government officials amounted to an unusual and visible diplomatic signal.

According to the daily La Croix, Charles Kushner’s latest summons fits a pattern of controversial and “undiplomatic” interventions since taking office in Paris in 2025. The newspaper highlighted his close ties to US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, portraying him as a figure whose actions have repeatedly stirred debate in France.

Commercial broadcaster TF1 underlined the symbolic weight of an ambassador declining a formal summons, while Le Point interpreted the move as testing the limits of diplomatic norms.

The 23-year-old French nationalist activist, Quentin Deranque, died on Feb. 14 after being severely beaten during clashes on the sidelines of a conference at Lyon’s Institute of Political Studies, where left-wing La France Insoumise (LFI) MEP Rima Hassan had been invited to speak.

According to police sources, an initial fight involving around 50 people broke out between far-left activists and members of the far-right identitarian group Nemesis, which had organized a protest outside the venue. The violence later spread to nearby streets.

Deranque was found with a serious head injury and hospitalized in critical condition before being declared brain dead.

The Lyon Prosecutor’s Office initially opened an investigation for “aggravated intentional violence,” stating that the circumstances must be determined.

The victim’s family has described the attack as a “murder committed by an organized group.”