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Emmanuel Macron statue stolen from the Grévin Museum by Greenpeace to denounce trade between France and Russia

Emmanuel Macron statue stolen from the Grévin Museum by Greenpeace to denounce trade between France and Russia
A wax statue of French President Emmanuel Macron during a Greenpeace action in front of the Russian Embassy in Paris on June 2, 2025. THOMAS SAMSON/AFP

The wax statue of Emmanuel Macron was stolen from the Musée Grévin on Monday, June 2, by activists from the NGO Greenpeace. They then placed it in front of the Russian embassy in Paris in protest against France's continued economic ties with Moscow, along with signs listing the products concerned – "chemical fertilizers," "uranium," "gas ." A banner was also displayed: "Ukraine is burning, business as usual."

"For us, France is playing a double game," and "Emmanuel Macron embodies this double discourse: he supports Ukraine but encourages French companies to continue trading with Russia," said Jean-François Julliard, director general of Greenpeace France, according to comments relayed by Agence France-Presse (AFP). "We are specifically targeting Emmanuel Macron, because he has a particular responsibility in this situation ," he added. "He should be the first in European discussions" to end trade contracts between Russia and European countries.

Very “precise” markings

According to a police source, two women and a man, posing as tourists, entered the Parisian museum, located in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. After changing their clothes, this time posing as artisans or employees of the establishment, they managed to steal the statue, worth 40,000 euros and hidden under a blanket, by leaving through an emergency exit.

According to a museum spokeswoman, they distracted the security guard by asking a question about the elevator's accessibility for disabled people while others donned maintenance workers' coats. "They had obviously done some very careful scouting," she told AFP, adding that the activists quickly called the museum to assure them that the statue would be returned "unharmed."

The wax effigy of Jacques Chirac was also stolen from the Musée Grévin in December 1983, when he was mayor of Paris, before being found a few days later at the Vincennes Zoo. The wax effigy of Georges Marchais, national secretary of the French Communist Party, was stolen by a nationalist group in 1980 and found in the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. Finally, during his term at the Élysée Palace (1974-1981), the statue of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing was stolen by angry motorcyclists.

The World with AFP

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