Newsletter
Newsletter Support JNS

Rubio discusses Iran, Gaza with French foreign affairs minister

Jewish groups declined to meet with Jean-Noël Barrot, the French minister for Europe and foreign affairs, during his recent visit to the United States.

Marco Rubio, Jean-Noël Barrot
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., May 1, 2025. Credit: Freddie Everett/U.S. State Department.

Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state, spoke with Jean-Noël Barrot, the French minister for Europe and foreign affairs, the U.S. State Department said.

The two leaders “reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring Iran never develops or acquires a nuclear weapon,” according to Tammy Bruce, the State Department spokeswoman.

Rubio and Barrot also talked about “the humanitarian situation in Gaza and efforts to reach a ceasefire, ending the Russia-Ukraine war, securing peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia and the ongoing conflict in Sudan,” Bruce said.

After French President Emmanuel Macron said he intends to recognize a Palestinian state in September, U.S. Jewish groups declined to meet with Barrot while he was visiting the United States.

Luc Jasmin III, who has drawn endorsements from CAIR and the governor of Washington, trailed 211 votes behind Natalie Poulson, the Republican.
No injuries were reported. Separately, Israeli soldiers shot dead two terrorists who posed a threat.
“Vandalizing the World War II Memorial is an outrageous insult to all who served and Holocaust survivors, as well as all Americans and the values for which our country stands,” Sara J. Bloomfield, director of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, told JNS.
“We will keep litigating until we get to the truth,” Randy Mastro told JNS, after oral arguments in New York County Supreme Court. “I’m sure the court will hear us when these procedural issues are behind us.”