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George Clooney 's tipping his cap to the robbers who shook down the Louvre in Paris ... showing respect from one professional thief to another.

The actor spoke to Variety at AFI Fest earlier this week ... and, the he talked about the thieves who pulled a fast one on the iconic French museum -- with Clooney even expressing a joking pride. Getty

Clooney said, "If you’re a professional thief like I am, I was very proud of those guys." Gallery Launch Gallery Getty

It's all one big gag -- Clooney also calls the theft "terrible" while expressing shock at the robbers' brazen actions -- but, it certainly conjured up questions about the upcoming "Ocean's 14."

George, Julia Roberts , Brad Pitt , Matt Damon and the whole crew are getting back together for anothe

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