French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Joe Biden stand together on stage during an official arrival ceremony for President Macron on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, on December 1, 2022.
Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
After marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day, French President Emmanuel Macron will host US President Joe Biden on Saturday for a state visit marked by pomp and show as well as talks on trade, Israel and Ukraine.
The two men, who have a warm relationship despite previous tensions over the submarine deal with Australia, will participate in a welcome ceremony with their wives at the famous Arc de Triomphe and a parade down the Champs-Elysées before holding a meeting on policy. issues and then attend dinner.
Biden hosted Macron on a state visit to the White House in 2022.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters earlier, “France… is our oldest and one of our deepest allies. This will be an important moment to reaffirm this alliance and also look to the future and what we have to achieve together.” this week.
Sullivan said the talks between the two men would address Russia's war with Ukraine, Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza, cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, and political issues ranging from climate change to artificial intelligence to supply chains.
White House spokesman John Kirby said that the two countries will announce a plan to work together in the field of maritime law enforcement, and that the US Coast Guard and the French Navy will discuss increasing cooperation.
Biden and Macron are also expected to discuss strengthening NATO, and both have pledged their countries' support for Ukraine, although they have not yet agreed on a plan to use frozen Russian assets to help Kiev. A US Treasury Department official said on Tuesday that the United States and its G7 partners are making progress in this regard.
Lee Kyung-hyun performs a centuries-old ritual in South Korea.
Biden met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Paris on Friday, and apologized for the US Congress' months-long delay in approving the latest aid package, and Zelensky delivered a speech before the French National Assembly.
During a speech at the American Cemetery in Normandy on Thursday, the anniversary of the Allied attack on Nazi German occupiers on French beaches in World War II, Biden called on Western powers to stay the course with Ukraine.
Macron and Biden will also consult on the situation in the Middle East.
Biden has been a strong supporter of Israel, which is pursuing Hamas after it attacked the country in October, but the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians has weakened Biden's left-leaning political base on Israel, hurting him as he runs against Republican Donald Trump for re-election. -Elections in November.
Beyond Ukraine, transatlantic trade issues are likely to loom large.
The US inflation reduction law, which Biden signed into law in August 2022, raised the ire of European officials. They see it as a protectionist move that withdraws investments from EU companies.
Macron said during his official visit to Washington in 2022 that the support package could “split the West” and weaken the European recovery after Covid-19 at a time when Washington is seeking allies against China and both sides are confronting Russia.
However, he and his European allies have received little concessions from Washington since then, and French officials say their goal for this visit remains to try to “resynchronize” the US and EU economic agendas.
