U.S. ambassador to France looking to relax diplomatic spat

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Tuesday morning that Kushner's no-show to a meeting would dent the ambassador’s ability to serve in France.

The U.S. ambassador to France sought Tuesday to smooth over a diplomatic spat with Paris, calling up the French foreign minister who had said earlier in the day that the U.S. diplomat would lose access to French government officials after he skipped a meeting.

French authorities had summoned Ambassador Charles Kushner — the father of U.S. President Donald Trump ’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner — over comments from the Trump administration that France objected to. But Kushner did not show up for the Monday night meeting, the foreign ministry said.

After French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Tuesday morning that the no-show would dent the ambassador’s ability to serve in France, Kushner telephoned the minister and they agreed to meet in coming days, his office said.

The U.S. Embassy in Paris said in a statement after the call that Kushner and Barrot “spoke today in a frank and amicable call, reaffirming their shared commitment to working together, along with all other ministers and French officials, on the many issues that impact the United States and France, particularly as the two countries celebrate 250 years of rich diplomatic relations.”

The affair was sparked by Trump administration tweets relating to the beating death in France of a far-right activist, Quentin Deranque. The 23-year-old student, described as a fervent nationalist, was beaten by a group of people earlier this month in the city of Lyon, in fighting that erupted between far-left and far-right activists. He later died of brain injuries.

In a post last week on X, the State Department’s Counterterrorism Bureau said “violent radical leftism is on the rise and its role in Quentin Deranque’s death demonstrates the threat it poses to public safety.”

The U.S. Embassy in Paris posted the same statement, in French.

The Paris government bristled at what it regarded as interference in French affairs and summoned Kushner. The ambassador’s subsequent call to Barrot on Tuesday after his no-show appeared to then help turn the page.