The key facts

  • Trump called the protests in France a 'full-scale revolution' and urged to 'remove the insurgents from the country'
  • According to France's interior minister, about 550,000 people took to the streets on Saturday; a police officer and a protester were killed
  • About Marine Le Pen, Trump said he does not know her but condemned her persecution

Warning of 'Europe's collapse'

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Europe will cease to exist if it does not address the migration problem. Answering journalists' question in the Oval Office about whether education could stop the unrest, he said: 'It's about migration,' adding that Europeans 'need to fix their behavior, otherwise there will be no Europe left.'

Assessment of the protests in France

Trump described what is happening in France as unprecedented in his experience: 'These were not small riots. This was not a small protest. This was a full-scale revolution, and it continues.' According to him, similar but smaller-scale processes are also underway in Italy. He called to 'remove the insurgents from the country,' stating: 'If they are not expelled, there will be no France.'

Comment on Le Pen

Asked whether he would support Marine Le Pen in next year's French presidential election, Trump replied that he does not know her and has never met her, but believes she was 'treated badly.' He called her March 2025 conviction for embezzlement of European Parliament funds a 'weaponization' of justice. In July, an appeals court allowed her to run in the elections, which will take place next spring.

Context of the protests

Protests in France have continued since September 18, when high school students began demonstrations and blockades that spread on a smaller scale to Belgium, Albania, Greece and Italy. The movement grew into nationwide protests over the rising cost of living, fuel prices and education funding. On Saturday, according to France's interior minister Laurent Nuñez, about 550,000 people took to the streets; the actions were accompanied by violence and arson of government buildings. One police officer and one protester were killed, and Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu reported 1,200 detentions.