Grenell: Chop French Loan After Tariffs Reaction

 Ric Grenell, President Donald Trump's envoy for special missions, suggested that the United States could cancel a multibillion-dollar loan to a French oil company after the president of France said European companies should avoid investing in the U.S.  

Grenell on Friday retweeted a proposal for the U.S. to cancel a major loan to France in response to French President Emmanuel Macron's reaction to Trump's tariffs, saying it was a "good idea" that he "just sent to DJT," referring to Trump by his initials.   

Macron on Thursday suggested that European companies should suspend their investments in the U.S. "until things are clarified" after Trump imposed a 10% tariff on most imports, with higher rates on imports from certain countries, which raised taxes on European Union products by 20%. 

Daniel Turner, farmer and head of the group Power the Future, posted on X in response to Macron's comments suggesting that Trump "should immediately cancel the $5 billion U.S. loan for France's TotalEnergies African LNG project" that would help complete construction on a liquified natural gas project off the coast of Mozambique.  

The U.S. Export-Import Bank agreed to the loan, which would allow the project to restart after years in stasis due to unrest in the region, just last month. TotalEnergies has not announced any plans to cease or suspend investment in the U.S.  

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/ric-grenell-emmanuel-macron-france/2025/04/04/id/1205705/

By Theodore Bunker    |   Friday, 04 April 2025 01:13 PM EDT