What is Emmanuel Macron playing at? In the space of just a few days, three apparently unconnected incidents have the French president’s fingerprints all over them. They indicate that, while Macron is a spent force at home, he is willing to deploy his powers to help France navigate the Iran war crisis and try to salvage his reputation – even if it means making his allies, including Britain and the United States, look utterly foolish.

While Macron is a spent force at home, he is willing to deploy his powers to help France navigate the Iran war crisis

While Macron is a spent force at home, he is willing to deploy his powers to help France navigate the Iran war crisis

On Thursday 2 April, a French container ship, the Kribi, became the first western vessel to cross the Strait of Hormuz and exit into the Gulf of Oman since the war against Iran began. The boat’s safe passage during the Iranian blockade came on the same day that Macron said ⁠that only diplomatic efforts, rather than military efforts, would ensure the reopening of the Strait. Did the French government help broker the ship’s safe journey through a passage of water dubbed the ‘Tehran Toll Booth’? It seems highly likely, but at the very least the incident........

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