The Elysee Palace has announced that French President Emmanuel Macron has been diagnosed with Covid-19 after creating symptoms.
The Elysee Palace has announced that French President Emmanuel Macron has been diagnosed with Covid-19 after creating symptoms.
- French President Emmanuel Macron tests positive for COVID-19 goes into 7-day self-isolation.
- The brief report did not give details of the symptoms experienced by the French president.
- French PM Jean Castex has said he will isolate himself after contacting Macron.
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In a brief statement on Thursday, he said the palace had administered the PCR test as soon as symptoms appeared and “would be self-isolated for seven days in accordance with the health protocol applicable to all.”
The statement said the 42-year-old president would “continue to work and carry out his activities remotely” but did not give further details about his condition.
Macron chaired the weekly cabinet meeting on Wednesday and welcomed Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa to a luncheon in Elysee ahead of his EU presidency.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez attended a luncheon in Elysee on Monday, accompanied by European Council President Charles Michel and Secretary-General of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Jose Angel Gurria.
Sanchez’s office said Thursday that he had suspended public activities and was isolating himself until Dec. 24.
His office said French Prime Minister Jean Castex would be isolated for seven days after seeing Macron recently. Health Minister Oliver Veran will present the government’s vaccination program to the upper house of parliament instead of the Castex.
Macron was due to leave for Lebanon on December 22 next week. A spokesman said the trip had now been cancelled. It was not immediately clear what efforts were underway to find the link, but palace officials said he was trying to assess the location of the virus.
The French president was one of the leaders and representatives of the European Union at the European Council of Heads of State meeting in Brussels, Belgium, last December 10-11.
Also, Macron is the latest in a series of world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, who was hospitalized in October, and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who contracted the Covid-19 in July. Placed in intensive care – though not on a ventilator – in March.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin was forced to resign in April and handed over to his deputy, while EU chief Brexit negotiator Michael Barnier was in March diagnosed .
That same month German Chancellor Angela Merkel had to isolate herself after her doctor tested positive.
