Macron urges Iran to halt regional attacks, warns of consequences

French President Emmanuel Macron has urged Iran to immediately stop what he described as “unacceptable attacks” carried out directly or through proxy groups across the Middle East, following rising regional tensions and a deadly drone strike on French forces.

Macron disclosed that he held a phone conversation with Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian on March 15, outlining France’s concerns and warning of potential consequences if hostilities continue.

In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), the French leader said he called on Tehran to halt attacks linked to it in several countries.

“I called on him to put an immediate end to the unacceptable attacks Iran is carrying out against countries in the region, whether directly or through proxies, including in Lebanon and Iraq,” Macron said.

Macron stressed that France’s military posture in the region is strictly defensive, aimed at protecting its interests, allies, and vital international shipping lanes.

“France is acting within a strictly defensive framework aimed at protecting its interests, its regional partners, and freedom of navigation, and that it is unacceptable for our country to be targeted,” he stated.

The 47-year-old president also pushed for a broader political and security arrangement to stabilise the region, insisting that Iran must never be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons.

He said such a framework must address Tehran’s ballistic missile programme and what France views as destabilising regional activities.

Macron additionally called for the urgent restoration of safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil transit corridors.

“Freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz must be restored as soon as possible,” he said.

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He also appealed for the release of two detained French nationals — Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris — held in Iran, describing their continued detention as unacceptable.

“Their ordeal has gone on for far too long, and they belong with their loved ones,” Macron added.

The diplomatic exchange came days after a deadly drone strike in northern Iraq involving a drone believed to be Iranian-made.

One French soldier was killed and six others wounded when the drone hit a military installation hosting French forces. France maintains about 600 troops in Iraq as part of the international coalition combating the extremist group Islamic State.

Condemning the incident earlier, Macron emphasised that French troops have been engaged solely in counterterrorism operations since 2015.

“This attack against our forces engaged in the fight against Daesh since 2015 is unacceptable,” he wrote, using the Arabic acronym for Islamic State.

Earlier in the conflict involving Iran and forces aligned with the United States and Israel, an Iranian drone reportedly struck a naval facility in Abu Dhabi hosting French troops. No casualties were recorded in that incident.

France has consistently criticised the escalation of hostilities while maintaining that its regional involvement is limited to defensive operations and the protection of strategic interests.

Earlier in March, Macron ordered the deployment of a French aircraft carrier to the Mediterranean Sea to safeguard maritime routes and European economic interests amid the crisis.

“We have economic interests to protect because oil and gas prices, as well as international trade, are profoundly disrupted by this war,” he said at the time.

France is estimated to have about 4,000 military personnel stationed across the Middle East, where tensions have surged in recent weeks due to ongoing conflicts and security threats.