French President Emmanuel Macron has laughed off the social media storm surrounding a now-viral video in which his wife, Brigitte Macron, appears to slap or push his face while the two were exiting a plane in Vietnam. The incident, which sparked a whirlwind of online theories and media commentary, has been described by Macron as nothing more than “joking around” between a long-married couple.

The footage, filmed on May 25 as the presidential couple disembarked in Hanoi, shows President Macron standing at the door of the aircraft, seemingly mid-conversation with someone out of frame. Without warning, two arms in red sleeves extend into the frame and push Macron’s face – covering his mouth and jaw – momentarily startling him. The president stumbles slightly, then regains his composure, smiling and waving to onlookers as his wife Brigitte emerges beside him in a red jacket.

Macron offers her his arm as they prepare to descend the stairs. She casually declines, and the two walk side by side, seemingly unbothered. But what looked like an ordinary exchange to some became fodder for conspiracy theorists and online commentators, who read into the incident everything from marital discord to covert political signals.

Speaking to reporters the next day, Macron expressed both amusement and disbelief at the response.

“There’s a video showing me and my wife bickering and joking, and somehow that becomes a sort of geo-planetary catastrophe,” Macron said. “People are coming up with theories to explain it – as if it’s a code or something ominous.”

Indeed, the internet has become a breeding ground for such speculations, with users........

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