France will summon U.S. Ambassador Charles Kushner to its foreign ministry on Monday after the American diplomat levied sharp allegations against his host country over its “lack of sufficient action” in response to the rise of antisemitism.
The French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Sunday that the country has “taken note of the allegations” Kushner made in his letter, published in the Wall Street Journal earlier Sunday, and “firmly rejects the allegations.”
The ministry acknowledged there has been a rise in antisemitic acts since Oct. 7, 2023, which it called “a reality we deeply regret and against which the French authorities are fully mobilized, as such acts are intolerable,” according to a translation.
But the French ministry said Kushner’s “allegations are unacceptable” and said his open letter to the French president violates the diplomatic law against interfering in the other country’s internal affairs.
“[The allegations] run counter to international law, in particular the obligation not to interfere in the internal affairs of States as provided for by the 1961 Vienna Convention governing diplomatic relations,” the statement read, according to the translation. “They also fall short of the quality of the transatlantic partnership between France and the United States and of the trust that must prevail between allies.”
“Ambassador Kushner will be summoned to the Quai d’Orsay on Monday, August 25,” the statement continued.
Kushner — the father of President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner — addressed French President Emmanuel Macron in his open letter in the Journal on Sunday, saying, “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.”
“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,” Kushner added in the letter.
Kushner noted he and Trump share Jewish grandchildren, saying the issue of fighting antisemitism is important to the U.S. president as well.
He touted steps Trump has taken to combat antisemitism, saying, “These measures prove that antisemitism can be fought effectively when leaders have the will to act.”
“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 wrote in the open letter.
Kushner said he “ready to work” with Macron and other French leaders “to forge a serious plan that addresses the roots of antisemitism and defeats it.”
The State Department stood by Kushner’s letter, in a statement responding to the French ministry’s decision to summon the ambassador.
“Yes, we stand by his comments. Ambassador Kushner is our U.S. government representative in France and is doing a great job advancing our national interests in that role,” principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement to The Hill.
