A French politician has called on the US to give the Statue of Liberty back after suggesting that some Americans “have chosen to switch to the side of the tyrants.”

The White House responded by saying that “it's only because of the United States of America that the French are not speaking German right now.”

A French politician suggested the two countries no longer share the values that inspired the gift more than a century ago. The White House sharply rejected his request, which he described as symbolic.