French officials are rolling out an aggressive new social media campaign in an effort to promote their political messaging and push back against what they claim is disinformation coming from the United States and other countries, Politico reported Thursday.
An X account operated by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, known as French Response, has begun publicly clapping back at statements from high-profile figures such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk, President Donald Trump, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. The account was launched in August 2025 ahead of the United Nations General Assembly and has already racked up nearly 150,000 followers.
French Response has recently expanded its focus beyond European targets to take aim at U.S.-based social media accounts and even some of France’s longtime state adversaries.
“The new strategy doesn’t only boil down to [French Response],” historian David Colon of Sciences Po in Paris told Politico. “It is first and foremost institutional, with the diplomatic corps mobilized for 24/7 watch.”
Neither the White House nor the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs immediately responded to requests for comment.
The account made waves after responding to a post from Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, who wrote on Jan. 26 that “panicked EU bureaucrats continue to attack X,” following the European Commission’s announcement of a new investigation into the platform under the Digital Services Act (DSA).
French Response replied with a video of two men dancing and smoking cigarettes, captioned: “Panicked EU bureaucrats right now.” Apparently, nothing says “serious geopolitical response” quite like a meme.
The account has also taken aim at the Trump administration’s policies. On the first day of his second term, President Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement, a move that officially took effect Tuesday, according to The Hill.
That same day, the State Department posted on X that the Paris Agreement “undercuts American energy independence, seeks climate finance redistribution, and tries to enforce net-zero compliance pressure,” adding that U.S. taxpayer dollars “will not be given to countries that do not merit financial assistance.”
French Response fired back, stating that while “agreements can be exited,” “scientific realities cannot.”
“Unpalatable but documented: global warming increases displacement, migration pressures and conflict risks,” the account added.
Another high-profile exchange came earlier this month after the White House posted an AI-generated image showing two dog sleds—one heading toward the White House and another toward stormy terrain labeled China and Russia—captioned: “Which way, Greenland man?”
French Response responded with a European Union flag emoji, a not-so-subtle reminder that both France and Denmark—Greenland’s governing country—are EU members. French President Emmanuel Macron has openly opposed Trump’s proposal to bring Greenland under U.S. control.
The Trump administration has drawn attention in recent months for its combative and meme-heavy social media presence. Meanwhile, California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has also adopted a trolling style online, borrowing from the same digital playbook.
It now appears France has joined the game—proving that when it comes to online politics, even foreign ministries want to be influencers.
