A brawl between their husbands has dragged Brigitte Macron and Michelle Bolsonaro into a saga not of their making. Photo / Supplied
A brawl between their husbands has dragged Brigitte Macron and Michelle Bolsonaro into a saga not of their making. Photo / Supplied
Two women are at the centre of a nasty global spat between two prominent leaders that could have catastrophic consequences for millions of people.
A bizarre tit-for-tat has been playing out on the sidelines of the G7 summit in the French resort of Biarritz, between France's president Emmanuel Macron and Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil.
The latter isn't present at the meeting of leaders of the world's seven largest economies, but has made an impact there by insulting the appearance of Mr Macron's wife, Brigitte.
Mr Macron was forced to address Mr Bolsonaro's remark on a disparaging Facebook post comparing his wife, Michelle, and Brigitte, reports news.com.au.
At 66, Brigitte is 25 years older than her husband, and the post compares Mr Bolsonaro, 64 and his wife Michelle, 37, with a photo of Mr and Mrs Macron.
The caption read: "Now you understand why Macron is persecuting Bolsonaro?"
Mr Bolsonaro responded: "Do not humiliate the guy, ha ha," referring to Mr Macron.
French television covers the controversial Facebook exchange. Photo / Supplied
Speaking at a press conference in Biarritz overnight, Mr Macron slammed the conduct and said women in Brazil were "probably feeling ashamed of their president".
"He said very disrespectful things about my wife. I have great respect for the Brazilian people and can only hope they soon have a president who is up to the job."
"We appreciate it, but maybe these resources would be put to better use reforesting Europe," his chief-of-staff Onyx Lorenzoni said.
"Macron can't even prevent a foreseeable fire in a church that is a world heritage site. What does he want to teach our country? He has plenty to take care of at home and in the French colonies."
Mr Bolsonaro lashed out at his French counterpart in a Tweet yesterday morning. Translated from Portuguese into English it read: "We cannot accept that President Macron unleashes unreasonable and unreasonable attacks on the Amazon, nor disguises his intentions behind the idea of a G-7 'alliance' to 'save' the Amazon, as if we were a colony or a no man's land."
Rather. he said, Latin American countries should "guarantee our sovereignty and natural wealth" in regards the Amazon. Mr Bolsonaro further claimed that "other heads of state sympathised with Brazil".
Neither statement expressly referred to the comments around Mr Macron's wife.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has rejected a funding package from G7 nations to help fight the Amazon fires. Photo / AP
The environment emergency in the Amazon is what sparked the bizarre brawl between the two leaders in the first place.
Mr Macron has led a campaign urging action on the fires, beginning with a tweet he posted in the lead-up to the G7.
In it, he shared a photograph of a section of rainforest engulfed in flames and wrote: "Our house is burning, literally."
It didn't go down with Mr Bolsonaro, who during his election campaign asked people to call him "Captain Chainsaw", owing to his promise to slash Amazon conservation funding.
Since taking office, Mr Bolsonaro has kept to his word and stripped funding from indigenous protection agency FUNAI, which works to protect the tribes and peoples of Brazil.
French President Emmanuel Macron has reacted angrily to the insult levelled against his wife Brigitte (pictured). Photo / AP
"I regret that President Macron seeks to instrumentalise (sic) an internal issue of Brazil and other Amazonian countries for personal political gains," he said.
"The sensationalist tone with which he refers to the Amazon, appealing even to fake photos, does nothing to solve the problem."
Sixty per cent of the Amazon region is in Brazil. The vast forest, dubbed 'the planet's lungs', also spans the countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru and Suriname.
Mr Macron insisted that France respected Brazil's sovereignty, but insisted the Amazon fires was a global issued and said "we cannot allow you to destroy everything".
Hundreds of new fires have flared up in the Amazon in Brazil, even as military aircraft dumped water over hard-hit areas.
Smoke has choked Port Velho city as fires raged in the northwestern state of Rondonia where fire-fighting efforts are concentrated.
At the weekend, the Brazilian president succumbed to international pressure and sent the nation's military to battle the sweeping fires.
Mr Bolsonaro has previously been condemned for describing rainforest protections as an obstacle to Brazil's economic development, sparring with critics who say the Amazon produces vast amounts of oxygen and is considered crucial for efforts to contain climate change.
The Amazon rainforest covers more than 5.5 million square kilometres. That's equivalent to Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory combined and produces 20 per cent of the world's oxygen.
