France summoned U.S. Ambassador Charles Kushner on Sunday after he published a scathing open letter in the Wall Street Journal to President Emmanuel Macron, accusing the French government of failing to adequately combat rising antisemitism and warning that “public statements haranguing Israel embolden extremists.”
The diplomatic confrontation escalates tensions between Washington and Paris over France’s approach to Jewish safety and Middle East policy, with Kushner’s Wall Street Journal letter — dated Monday, August 25, but released to the press late Sunday afternoon — marking an extraordinary public rebuke from a sitting U.S. envoy to his host nation’s leader.
Writing on the 81st anniversary of the Allied Liberation of Paris, Kushner opened with a direct assault on Macron’s record: “On the 81st anniversary of the Allied Liberation of Paris, which ended the deportation of Jews from French soil, I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it.”
The ambassador painted a grim picture of French Jewish life, declaring that “antisemitism has long scarred French life, but it has exploded since Hamas’s barbaric assault on Oct. 7, 2023.” He continued: “In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized. Your own Interior Ministry has reported antisemitic incidents even at preschools.”
Kushner then delivered his most pointed criticism of Macron’s Middle East policy: “Public statements haranguing Israel and gestures toward recognition of a Palestinian state embolden extremists, fuel violence, and endanger Jewish life in France. In today’s world, anti-Zionism is antisemitism—plain and simple.”
Drawing on his personal connection to President Donald Trump, Kushner wrote: “President Trump and I have Jewish children and share Jewish grandchildren. I know how he feels about antisemitism, as do all Americans.” He detailed Trump’s current aggressive anti-antisemitism measures: “He directed the Education Department to enforce civil-rights protections for Jewish students on university campuses, making clear that harassment and discrimination won’t be tolerated.”
The letter outlined additional Trump administration actions: “He expanded resources for the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security to safeguard synagogues and Jewish schools. He ordered strict vetting to bar entry for foreigners espousing antisemitic hatred and revoked visas for foreign agitators. He oversaw the deportation of Hamas sympathizers and cut funding to organizations promoting antisemitic incitement.”
Kushner emphasized Trump’s broader strategic impact: “And by crippling Iran’s nuclear-weapons program, he struck directly at the world’s leading state sponsor of antisemitism and terror and saved millions of lives. These measures prove that antisemitism can be fought effectively when leaders have the will to act.”
The ambassador painted perhaps his most damning assessment of France’s current state: “Today, many French Jews fear that history will repeat itself in Europe. Parents encourage their children to emigrate; surveys show most French citizens believe another Holocaust could happen in Europe. Nearly half of French youth report never having heard of the Holocaust at all.”
He challenged France’s educational system directly: “What are children being taught in French schools if such ignorance persists?”
The letter concluded with specific demands: “Mr. President, I urge you to act decisively: enforce hate-crime laws without exception; ensure the safety of Jewish schools, synagogues and businesses, prosecute offenders to the fullest extent; and abandon steps that give legitimacy to Hamas and its allies.” Kushner closed by positioning himself as ready to work with France: “As U.S. ambassador to France, I stand ready to work with you and with leaders across French society to forge a serious plan that addresses the roots of antisemitism and defeats it.”
The French government’s decision to summon Kushner for diplomatic consultations signals Paris’s displeasure with the unprecedented public criticism from America’s top representative. French officials have not yet responded publicly to the letter’s specific allegations, but the summoning represents one of the most serious diplomatic incidents between the allies in recent memory.
The diplomatic crisis builds on earlier tensions from last week when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent his own letter to Macron, writing: “Your call for a Palestinian state pours fuel on this antisemitic fire. It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement. It rewards Hamas terror, hardens Hamas’s refusal to free the hostages, emboldens those who menace French Jews and encourages the Jew-hatred.” Macron had announced that France would formally recognize a Palestinian state during a U.N. meeting in September, drawing swift rebukes from both Israeli and American officials.
The French presidency responded to Netanyahu’s accusations by calling the Israeli leader’s claims “abject” and “erroneous,” setting the stage for Kushner’s even more direct intervention on behalf of the Trump administration. The ambassador’s letter suggests Washington intends to make protection of Jewish communities a central element of its diplomatic pressure on European allies.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
