American diplomats exited a United Nations Security Council meeting on Monday as France’s delegation began to address the chamber, escalating a public feud between Washington and Paris over human rights leadership. Main Developments The walkout occurred during a session on Russia’s war against Ukraine. Dan Negrea, an alternate US representative, told the council afterward that his delegation would continue to leave the room until France renounced what he called its “condescending and disrespectful rhetoric.” France’s ambassador, Jerome Bonnafont, did not acknowledge the walkout when he spoke. He instead stated that France was working to preserve the UN’s independence and its capacity to act. Read also: Second Shooting at US Consulate in Toronto This Year Background Two days before the walkout, an online exchange erupted between US and French officials. France’s UN Mission in Geneva posted on Saturday that the US was no longer a “beacon of human rights” and stood isolated alongside North Korea, Nicaragua, Mali, and Russia. US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz responded on X, accusing France of voting for a rights chief who “has been lecturing free, sovereign democracies like the United States, the UK, and Israel, while cozying up to the world’s worst oppressors.” The dispute centered on Washington’s vote against renewing the four-year term of UN human rights chief Volker Turk. Why It Matters The walkout reflects deepening cracks in the transatlantic alliance under the Trump administration. Since 2025, the US has cut funding to UN agencies and withdrawn from dozens of UN entities. Washington had also threatened to reassess its engagement over Turk’s mandate. Turk, who has criticized violations of international law by Israel and the US in Palestine and Iran, was reappointed by a UN General Assembly vote of 144 in favor, 10 against, and 13 abstentions. The US and France have also clashed over NATO spending, trade policy, and Trump’s threats to occupy Greenland. France, along with other European states, has drawn Trump’s ire for refusing direct participation in the US-Israel war on Iran. What's Next Negrea’s statement suggests further US walkouts may occur at the Security Council unless France changes its rhetoric. No timeline for resolution of the broader disputes—over Turk’s mandate, UN funding, or NATO commitments—has been announced. The Trump administration has not indicated whether it will seek further cuts to UN engagement.