Hours after recognising Palestinian statehood in a historic speech at the UN General Assembly on Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron was prevented from crossing the street by police in New York.
It was moments before US President Donald Trump's motorcade was to drive through and security measures dictate that the area be blocked to all traffic, including pedestrians.
In a now viral video, Mr Macron can be seen asking a policeman: “If you don't see it, let me cross.” The policeman answers: “I'm sorry, President, I'm really sorry. Everything's frozen right now. There's a motorcade coming right now.”
So, Mr Macron called Mr Trump: “Guess what: I'm waiting in the street because everything is frozen because of you.”
The French President is then seen walking through the streets, speaking on the phone with his US counterpart for half an hour, according to reports. The call was confirmed to the press by his entourage.
“Whenever the US President travels to the United Nations headquarters, security measures impose what is known as a 'freeze', shutting down traffic across several blocks around the UN,” they said.
“That was the case yesterday as we were leaving the building, with the American presidential motorcade on its way. Taking advantage of the pause, the President placed a phone call to Donald Trump.”
The exact details of the call remain under wraps, but a number of international crises are headlining UNGA this year: conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, as well as the Iran nuclear programme.
“The exchange was described as warm and friendly, and provided an opportunity to touch base on a number of international issues,” Mr Macron's entourage said.
