The French president's Armistice Day speech in Paris on Sunday stridently criticized a recent tendency toward "nationalism" in what many suspect was a specific jab at the foreign policies of the Trump administration, according to The Hill.
Standing at the Arc de Triomphe alongside some 70 world leaders — including Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the US president — Macron
described a growing nationalism in Europe and the US as "a betrayal of patriotism," cited by the Washington Post.
"Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism," Macron stated, adding, "Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism. By saying our interests first […] we erase what a nation holds dearest, what gives it life, what gives it grace, and what is essential: its moral values."
Trump has been consistently accused of calling himself a nationalist, a label that he reaffirmed last week during a news conference, according to the US News & World Report.
Macron's Sunday remarks followed a Saturday White House cancellation of a planned visit by Trump and the first lady to a US military cemetery in northern France due to rain, a decision that was quickly met with international and domestic scorn.
Several days prior to the weekend's commemoration events, Trump referred to Macron's comments regarding the creation of a European army as "very insulting," according to Reuters.