French Ambassador to the United States Gerard Araud is not shy, and has less of a filter than many other diplomats.
The latest example can be found in a recent visit to the Atlantic Council, where he created some waves and angered some pretty powerful people with him frank comments about the Iran nuclear negotiations. Here is more from The New York Times:
...John Kerry was angry at Araud’s bluntness. Still, the ambassador doubled down at a recent panel at the Atlantic Council think tank, asserting that there had been too much focus on Iran’s “chest-banging” and demands at the start of the negotations, and predicting: “It’s very likely that we don’t have an agreement before the end of June, or even after June.” That made news and drew a rebuke from the State Department’s lead negotiator.
“Wendy Sherman called me, and she was livid. ‘Gérard, what do you say?’ ” Araud told me, with a charming smirk. He sent out a dutiful tweet, clarifying that he simply meant that the Iranians would wait until the last minute, as they have done before.
Here is a previous Think Tank Watch piece on how Amb. Araud loves partying with think tankers. Perhaps he is looking for a post-diplomatic career at a Washington, DC think tank?
