The mayor of Nice, Éric Ciotti, accuses Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot of insulting and threatening him during the inauguration of the Bharat Innovates exhibition, in the presence of Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A report has been filed with the Public Prosecutor and a resignation request has been sent to the Prime Minister.
A heated altercation allegedly occurred between Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot and the mayor of Nice, Éric Ciotti, on June 14, during the inauguration of the Bharat Innovates exhibition. The incident allegedly took place at the Nice Exhibition Palace, while the delegation led by Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting the exhibition dedicated to Indian innovation and technology.
According to several witnesses cited by various media outlets, Philippe Tabarot allegedly called Éric Ciotti “a shrimp” out loud. The minister then allegedly approached the UDR president and told him: “I’m going to make you disappear. I’m going to make you disappear by sending Georgians after you.”
Éric Ciotti allegedly immediately replied: “It’s you who will disappear from the Senate,” referring to the senatorial elections scheduled for September.
A report to the prosecutor and a resignation request
Following this incident, Éric Ciotti filed a report with the Public Prosecutor of Nice. He, who is still a deputy for Alpes-Maritimes, also sent a letter to Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu to denounce acts that he considers particularly serious.
In this letter, Éric Ciotti claims to have been targeted by “threats made with premeditation within the meaning of article 222-17 of the Criminal Code” as well as by a “public insult under the law of July 29, 1881, in a high-level diplomatic context.”
The letter also mentions “violent behavior towards him during questions to the government on May 12.” For the mayor of Nice, the incidents of June 14 are therefore not an isolated incident.
Éric Ciotti denounces a “considerable institutional gravity” and an “attack on the dignity of governmental office, on the representation of the State to our foreign partners, and on the serenity that must govern relations between the nation’s elected officials and members of the executive.”
The UDR president “solemnly” calls on the Prime Minister to take the necessary measures, particularly the departure of Philippe Tabarot from the government. The letter describes the remarks attributed to the minister as “threats of a mafia-type nature that have no place in our democracy.”
This new confrontation occurs in a context of high political tensions between the two elected officials from Alpes-Maritimes. Relations have deteriorated since Éric Ciotti’s break with The Republicans in 2024. At this stage, Philippe Tabarot has not publicly commented on this matter.
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