President Emmanuel Macron's reaction after slap from wife shows it was no joke - expert

French President appeared to be sensationally slapped in the face by his wife, , following a fiery exchange during an official visit. The moment was caught on video, and now a body language expert has said there was a clear sign that Macron was less than impressed with his wife following the ordeal.

The captured shortly after they touched down at Hanoi airport in Vietnam. The French leader can be seen standing there solo as the aircraft door is open, but just moments later, his wife can be seen swiftly raising her hand towards his face, seemingly delivering a slap.

The president appeared completely taken aback and, in a bid to defuse the situation, quickly turned to acknowledge onlookers with a smile and wave. He then briefly disappeared out of view before returning to walk down the plane's steps alongside Brigitte. He appeared to reach out for her hand, but instead, she opted to grip the stair rail.

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After reports of the incident emerged, Macron insisted that it had been blown out of proportion. He told reporters, "I was bickering, or rather joking, with my wife. It's nothing." An Elysee official denied it showed an argument between the couple, with a statement saying: "It was a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh."

However, body language expert Judi James believes there was more to it. "I would not describe the gesture we saw from inside the plane as one of 'play' as has been claimed," Judi told

She continued: "Pushing your partner in the face with your hand so hard their head reels to the side and they need to put a hand out to keep balance, especially with what looks like an extra 'shove' at the end of the contact, should not be normalized by calling it 'fun' just to save political face."

Evaulating the footage, Judi added: "There is no follow-up shared laughter, grins or teasing rituals, Macron performs a 'think-on-your-feet' wave before stepping back in towards his wife, but he seems to touch his face too, in a checking gesture."

The Macrons touched down in Hanoi on Sunday night (25 May), embarking on a week-long Southeast Asian tour with planned visits to Indonesia and Singapore. Today, the president is set to engage with Vietnamese President Luong Cuong and Communist Party Secretary-General To Lam.

Following their arrival, he shared on social media: "The major challenges of the century... can only be met in cooperation with our partners. I've come here to strengthen our ties in key areas: defence, innovation, energy transition and cultural exchanges. Everywhere I go, I'll be saying one simple thing: France is a power of peace and balance."

The French President is set to make a state visit to the UK in July. As confirmed by earlier this month, Macron will reside at Windsor Castle during his visit, which is scheduled from 8 to 10 July.

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