`

A French politician is calling for the United States to return the Statue of Liberty, which France gifted to the U.S. in the 1880s.

Raphaël Glucksmann, a center-left politician, made the remarks at a recent convention for his political party, Place Publique.

According to the French newspaper Le Monde, Glucksmann told supporters, “We’re going to say to the Americans who have chosen to side with the tyrants, to the Americans who fired researchers for demanding scientific freedom: ‘Give us back the Statue of Liberty.'”

He added, “We gave it to you as a gift, but apparently you despise it. So, it will be just fine here at home.”

France presented the Statue of Liberty to the U.S. on July 4, 1884. It was later unveiled in New York City on Oct. 28, 1886, by then-President Grover Cleveland to mark the centennial of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

Designed by French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi, the statue weighs approximately 450,000 pounds and is 305 feet tall.

A smaller replica of the statue is located on Allée des Cygnes, a small island on the Seine in Paris. The U.S. gifted this replica to France in 1889 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.

Glucksmann, a strong supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russia, has criticized President Trump for reducing support for the country in its fight against Moscow’s invasion since February 2022.

He also criticized Trump for cutting federal funding to American colleges and research institutions, which prompted a French government initiative to attract some of those institutions to France.

“The second thing we’re going to say to the Americans is: if you want to fire your best researchers, if you want to fire all the people who, through their freedom and their sense of innovation, their taste for doubt and research, have made your country the world’s leading power, then we’re going to welcome them,” Glucksmann said.

Glucksmann also criticized right-wing members of the French Parliament for being a “fan club” for Trump and Elon Musk, a senior advisor to Trump who also leads the Department of Government Efficiency.