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| - Two weeks after the start of the U.S. war on Iran, a rumor began to spread that French Gen. Michel Yakovleff, who served in top leadership positions at NATO, said that for France to help the U.S. secure the Strait of Hormuz against Iran's strikes would be like "buying cheap tickets to the Titanic," the luxury cruise ship that hit an iceberg and sank on its maiden voyage from England to New York City in 1912.
Several posts online made the claim, including on Facebook. One post on X included a three-minute video of Yakovleff saying the quote in an interview on a French television channel (archived):
The post read, in part:
Retired French General Michel Yakovleff on why France shouldn't join Trump's Hormuz coalition:
It's not the time to buy a promo ticket for the Titanic.
On the Titanic, the captain, it seems, wanted to sell cheap tickets for the dinner dance after hitting the iceberg.
In the video, Yakovleff could be heard saying, "We have five reasons to say no, in reality." The last one he listed was that this operation was a failure:
YAKOVLEFF: Apparently, on the Titanic, the captain tried to sell discounted tickets for the dinner dance after hitting the iceberg.
HOST: Is this where we are? Is this operation the Titanic?
YAKOVLEFF: Yes, it's possible. So now is definitely not the time to buy a ticket on sale to the Titanic.
As we outline below, the video was authentic and the quote was correctly attributed to Yakovleff, a frequent guest on French news programs known for blunt assertions and colorful language.
Yakovleff responds to Trump asking France for help
The clip came from the program "Face à Darius Rochebin" on French cable news channel LCI. Yakovleff was a guest on the show on March 16, 2026. He was invited to discuss, among other topics, U.S. President Donald Trump's request that France, among other countries, send ships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route for oil tankers from the Persian Gulf.
Iran has controlled the maritime passage since the U.S. and Israel began to launch strikes on the Middle Eastern country, causing the price of crude oil to skyrocket. This turn of events emboldened critics of the war and increased political pressure on Trump to end the military operation.
Asked why he thought France should refuse to send ships to defend the Strait of Hormuz, Yakovleff first underscored an apparent contradiction in Trump's declarations: "First he [Trump] says, 'We are the world's most powerful, we don't need anyone, but in reality we call on others [for help].' Which is it?" (His answer begins at the 28:32 mark in this video.)
What Yakovleff said
Then, Yakovleff listed five reasons for France to deny naval support.
The first, Yakovleff said, is that Trump doesn't seem to have understood that if NATO gets involved in a military operation, NATO should take command. There should not be multiple operations, such as one in which the U.S. bombs Iran and another in which NATO secures the strait.
The second reason Yakovleff cited is that for NATO allies to join the military effort, the U.S. must outline a clear goal, in writing, which the country has not done. "It should not be tweets," Yakovleff said, referring to Trump's Truth Social posts. "It can't be things that change every two minutes." Yakovleff added that if the U.S. wanted the support of NATO allies, the U.S. military command should have asked for help two months ago, before the first strikes in Iran.
The third reason the French general evoked is his belief that the U.S. does not actually need naval help to secure the Strait of Hormuz. Instead, Yakovleff said, Trump is seeking to spread the responsibility for the political fallout of his decision to attack Iran.
The fourth reason is the problem of trust, Yakovleff said. "This is a guy who left the Afghans in the lurch, so he'll leave us in the lurch the moment it's convenient." (Trump initiated the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan during his first term, in February 2020.)
Yakovleff illustrated his fifth reason with the Titanic analogy, citing a military principle he said he learned with the U.S. military: Never reinforce failure.
Yakovleff is often invited to speak on French news and talk shows. During an appearance on the talk show "Quotidien" on March 12, 2026, he described the attack on Iran — which the Trump administration refers to as "Operation Epic Fury" — as "Operation Epic Bulls***," using a French expletive for stupidity that rhymes with "fury."
For further reading, Snopes verified the claim that former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich suggested using nuclear detonations to form a canal as an alternative shipping route to the Strait of Hormuz.
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