White House rejects demand for Statue of Liberty's return to France

WASHINGTON -- The White House on Monday rejected a French politician's demand for the return of the Statue of Liberty to France.

"Absolutely not," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told a televised press briefing, in response to the demand by French member of the European Parliament Raphael Glucksmann.

"My advice to that unnamed low-level French politician would be to remind them that it's only because of the United States of America that the French are not speaking German right now," Leavitt said, seemingly referencing the American-French alliance during World War II against Nazi Germany.

Glucksmann on Sunday said he does not think that the United States represents the values of the Statue of Liberty anymore and called for its return to France.

The statue was officially unveiled on Oct 28, 1886, in New York, gifted to America as "a symbol of freedom, inspiration, and hope", according to the monument's official website.

The statue, situated at the New York Harbor, was later seen as a symbol of welcome by immigrants arriving by sea. Today, it is a top tourist site in New York City.