French President Emmanuel Macron and his entourage had to wait as the police cleared the New York streets for US President Donald Trump's convoy on Monday. The delay occurred in Manhattan shortly after Macron delivered a speech at the 80th United Nations General Assembly, where he formally announced France's recognition of the State of Palestine.
A video circulating on social media shows Macron and his team interacting with a police officer. "I'm sorry, Mr President, I'm so sorry. It's just that everything is frozen right now. There is a motorcade coming," an officer told the French President.
Macron was then seen calling Trump during the hold-up. He joked, "Guess what, I'm waiting in the street because everything is frozen for you."
After the motorcade passed, the streets were reopened to pedestrians, and Macron continued on foot toward the French Embassy. His walk reportedly lasted about half an hour, during which several people stopped to take photos or greet him.
At the high-level UN summit, Macron formally announced France's recognition of the State of Palestine. The meeting, co-convened by France and Saudi Arabia, shed light on international support for Palestinian statehood and a two-state solution.
Alongside France, leaders from Andorra, Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, and Monaco also declared their recognition of Palestine.
The summit was boycotted by Israel and the United States, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio labelling the initiative a "gift to Hamas" and restricting Palestinian leaders' access to the event.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Palestinian statehood is a right and not a reward.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, speaking remotely, called for an end to violence and proposed reforms to improve governance and social programmes in Palestinian territories.
