Emmanuel Macron described Britain as an ally and said its people would always be friends with France, despite the occasional mistakes made by its leaders. “Britain is a friend of France, I don’t doubt that for a second,” he said when asked about the remarks by Ms Truss, widely tipped to become Britain’s next prime minister. But he warned: “If France and Britain cannot tell whether they are friends or foes … then we are headed for serious trouble.” The Foreign Secretary was accused of a “sad” lack of judgement, after she told Tory MPs at a rally in Norwich on Thursday that she was undecided about whether he was “friend or foe”. The UK and France have clashed over a number of issues in recent months, including boat crossings in the English Channel and the travel chaos in Dover. In an apparent bid to smooth diplomatic relations, Boris Johnson described the French president as a “very good friend” of the UK. He also claimed that Mr Macron was a “big, big fan of our country”. “I think I’ve always had a very good relationship with Emmanuel Macron,” he told reporters, “Emmanuel Macron is a good friend who pays.” Allies of Ms Truss also sought to downplay the series, describing her comments as “light-hearted”. During a series of Quickfire questions, TalkTV’s Julia Hartley-Brewer, who presented the tours, asked Ms Truss: “President Macron, friend or foe?” “The jury is out,” he replied to loud applause. He then added: “But if I become prime minister, I would judge him by actions, not words.” Her opponent Rishi Sunak replied ‘friend’ when asked the same question. Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Macron’s comments showed a “sad lack of judgement” by insulting a close ally. “At a time when the West must remain united in the face of Russian efforts to divide us, the fact that the Secretary of State chose to wantonly insult one of our closest allies shows a terrible and disturbing lack of judgment,” he said. He added: “Liz Truss’ decision-making has clearly become clouded by weeks and weeks of playing to the gallery of Tory members rather than focusing on the country.” Former Tory minister and counterpart Gavin Barwell said: “You’d think the Foreign Secretary knew we were in a military alliance with France.” Elsewhere in the race, Ms Truss admitted that if it was a choice between relying on France or China for nuclear expertise, she would choose France. She said: “I am very clear that we need to strengthen our nuclear industry, including Sizewell, including the small modular reactors produced in Derbyshire. “Frankly, I’d rather have more domestic nuclear expertise, and unfortunately we’ve lost that because we failed to do these things 20 years ago or 30 years ago,” he said. “If it’s a choice between France and China, I’d take France.” Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi defended Ms Truss, calling her comments “light-hearted”. “It was clearly said as a light-hearted comment with a touch of humor,” Mr Zahawi told broadcasters on Friday. Truss’s ally continued: “And there was much laughter around him. Liz and I both know that France is a strategic ally in defense, in cyberspace, in our war effort to help Ukraine, all those things that we work very closely with.”
