'Was she handing him a tissue?': Russia mercilessly mocks Macron over viral video of him getting ‘slapped’ by wife

A video showing French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife, Brigitte, pressing his face with force has taken the internet by storm.

A video of French President Emmanuel Macron seemingly getting shoved in the face by his wife Brigitte Macron just ahead of the couple stepping out of their aircraft in Vietnam has gone viral on social media and has amused many, including Russia's foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

Emmanuel Macron described the moment as one of him teasing his wife and called out people for attributing “nonsense” around it. (REUTERS)

Reacting to the video, Maria Zakharova said on Telegram that Macron had received "a right hook from his wife", reported AFP. The incident had happened as the couple arrived in Vietnam’s Hanoi over the weekend for the opening leg of a Southeast Asia tour.

Mocking the video, Zarkharova said, "Did the first lady decide to cheer up her husband with a gentle pat on the cheek and miscalculate her strength? Was she handing him a tissue, but missed? Did she want to fix his collar, but ended up reaching for her beloved's face?"

In the video, which is in wide circulation on social media, a moment has been captured that briefly shows Brigitte’s hands reaching out and pressing against Macron’s face with a bit of force. It purportedly shows Brigitte shoving Macron in the face, reacting to which, Macron looks momentarily startled. However, he quickly gained back his composure and waved to the media waiting outside the aircraft.

The video was shared widely on the internet, with some people calling out Brigitte for the gesture and others mocking the moment.

What Macron said about the video

Macron reacted to the video and its wide circulation on social media while he was in Vietnam on Monday and confirmed that the clip was real, however, it was being blown out of proportion. He described the moment as one of him teasing his wife and calling out people for attributing “nonsense” to it.

“There’s a video showing me joking and teasing my wife, and somehow that becomes a sort of geo-planetary catastrophe, with people even coming up with theories to explain it,” he said.

“The videos are all real, and yes, sometimes people tamper with them, but people are attributing all kinds of nonsense to them,” he added.