state visit macron

Pomp, pageantry, and fraternité: Memorable moments from Macron's state visit with the Bidens

WASHINGTON — When the French come calling, you aim to impress.

With pomp and pageantry, President Joe Biden welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, to the White House on Thursday for an official state visit and dinner — the first of Biden’s presidency.

The official reason for the French leader’s visit was to celebrate the historic bond between the two longtime allies and strategize about world affairs like Russia's war on Ukraine .

But the visit also comes after a diplomatic spat caused by a submarine partnership struck last year between the U.S., Australia, and Britain . The agreement cost the French its own submarine deal with the Aussies and dealt a serious blow to French national pride

That transatlantic tiff may not be forgotten, as far as the French are concerned, but Thursday was a day to focus on friendship and fraternité (brotherhood).

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Here are some memorable moments from Macron's visit:

A 21-gun salute and a French kiss

Biden and first lady Jill Biden strolled out of the White House and down a red carpet at 9:18 a.m. on the chilly, late-fall morning to await the arrival of the guests of honor. A minute later, the Macrons pulled up in a black stretch limo. The couples exchanged greetings — in true French fashion, Macron kissed Jill Biden on each cheek — and then the festivities began in earnest.

There was a military procession, a 21-gun salute, and a formal inspection of the troops. A band played “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the French national anthem, “La Marseillaise.” As the two world leaders waited to begin their remarks, the Army’s Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps — decked out in long red coats and white pants — paraded in front of the stage. 

Afterward, the presidents and their spouses headed to the Truman Balcony, where they waved to the crowd that had assembled on the South Lawn to watch the affair.

The war in Ukraine: Biden open to talks with Putin about ending Ukraine war as US, France show united front

The handshake(s)

Body language can often reveal what people aren’t willing to say out loud. In this case, it just seemed to reinforce what Biden and Macron have said over and over again: They genuinely like each other.

While Biden waited for his remarks to be translated into French, the two men clasped hands for several seconds. They shook hands again and shared a prolonged embrace after Macron finished speaking. Both times, a big smile stretched across the French leader’s face.

That’s a stark contrast to Macron’s awkward, white-knuckled handshake with former President Donald Trump at a NATO summit in Brussels in 2017. That handshake — which Macron reportedly practiced after watching videos of Trump’s technique — came across like a test of wills, with the French president seeming determined to demonstrate to the American president that he’d met his match in the transatlantic quest for dominance.

Gift exchange

Showing up at a fancy affair empty-handed is très gauche (or as Americans would say, tacky). So naturally, the first families exchanged gifts.

The Bidens presented the Macrons with a custom mirror made of fallen wood from the White House grounds. The mirror, by an American furniture maker, is a reproduction of a looking glass from the White House collection that hangs in the West Wing.

The president gifted his French counterpart with a custom vinyl record collection of American musicians and an archival facsimile print of Thomas Edison’s 1877 Patent of the American Phonograph. Jill Biden gave Brigitte Macron a gold and emerald pendant necklace designed by a French-American designer.

The Macrons came bearing multiple gifts for their hosts, including a vinyl record and CD of the original soundtrack of director Claude Lelouch’s "Un Homme et une femme,” the 1966 film the Bidens went to see on their first date.

The Bidens also got a cup from Christofle, a French manufacturer of fine silverware; a sweater from House St. James; and a watch from LIP Horlogerie. Jill Biden got copies of Gustave Flaubert’s “Madame Bovary” and Albert Camus’ “The Plague, The Fall, Exile and the Kingdom, and Selected Essays.”

French tiff: Macron, in Washington, slams Biden climate incentives as 'super aggressive' to French firms

A constellation of guests

The Bidens and the Macrons weren’t the only big names at the state dinner. A constellation of stars from the world of politics, business, and entertainment scored an invitation to the glitzy soiree on the White House South Lawn.

Among the well-known attendees: Vice President Kamala Harris; actresses Jennifer Garner, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Ariana DeBose; Apple CEO Tim Cook; cabinet secretaries Antony Blinken (secretary of state), Pete Buttigieg (transportation) and Lloyd Austin (defense); House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Republican who hopes to succeed her, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California; Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour; and musicians Jon Legend and Jon Batiste, who provided the night’s entertainment.

"It's going to be fire," Batiste promised reporters ahead of his performance.

French fashion designer Christian Louboutin, who also made the cut, smiled when reporters asked how many of the night's guests might be wearing his fancy footwear.

"Let me check," he said.

Moving on: Can U.S. and France move past tensions triggered by submarine deal? C'est possible .

Haute cuisine, American style

What do you feed the guests of honor when they happen to hail from the place that introduced the world to haute cuisine? If you’re the Bidens, you stuff them with American gastronomy.

Inside a heated pavilion on the South Lawn, more than 300 guests sat at a mix of square and rectangular tables with dark blue silk cloths, red candles, and arrangements of red, white and blue flowers, including white irises, the official flower of France.

They gorged on butter-poached Maine lobster, beef with shallot marmalade, and a selection of American cheeses. For dessert, there was orange chiffon cake with roasted pears — and in a nod to the French — crème fraiche ice cream.

'Vive la France, and God bless America'

In the spirit of friendship, Biden and Macron saluted each other with a traditional toast of American sparkling wine.

Biden noted that France was the United States' first ally and the first to fly an American flag after the Revolutionary War.

“Vive la France, and God bless America,” he said, clinking glasses with the French leader.

Macron stressed that the longtime relationship between the two countries “means a lot” to the French.

“We come from the same values, principles,” he said, warning that those principles are now in jeopardy by people looking to reverse them.

Michael Collins and Francesca Chambers cover the White House. Follow Collins on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS and Chambers @fran_chambers .

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Emmanuel Macron’s State Visit to the United States (29 November – 2 December 2022)

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From 29 November to 2 December 2022, the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, was in the United States for the Biden Administration’s first state visit, sending a signal of the strong relationship between the two countries. He was accompanied by the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna.

Summary of the state visit

❝Three days in the United States of America.❞ https://t.co/82vqkJXyDL — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) December 6, 2022

What issues did the state visit focus on?

President @EmmanuelMacron is in the US, marking the first state visit by a foreign Head of State under President Joe Biden's administration. @AClaireLegendre decodes this symbol of French-American friendship 🇫🇷 🇺🇸 #DiploMatters #oldestallies @FranceintheUS pic.twitter.com/5SfoFbw2Y8 — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) November 30, 2022

Relive the state visit, day by day

3 december 2022.

The President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, and the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, went to New Orleans in Louisiana, a breeding ground of the French culture and language in the country and hard hit by the consequences of climate change.

Welcome to Louisiana, Mr. President @EmmanuelMacron and to you Mrs. Brigitte Macron. Your arrival marks the beginning of a fascinating visit. 🙏 Governor John Bel Edwards and First Lady Donna Edwards for your warm welcome! #PRMacroninNOLA ⚜ pic.twitter.com/NpykSnde7c — Consulate General of France in Louisiana 🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@FranceLouisiana) December 2, 2022

President Macron met with local people working in these various domains and gave a speech at the end of his visit on France and Louisiana’s relationship and on Francophonie.

Read the statement on the Élysée website

❝Back in Paris after the State visit of the President of the Republic to the United States. It was a great honour for our country and also the opportunity to ensure good coordination of our strategies in response to shared challenges. #Ukraine #China #Climate #Economy ❞ https://t.co/zSGnI1ZAoU — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) December 5, 2022

2 December 2022

1er décembre, Maison Blanche, Washington. Bientôt le diner d'État offert en l'honneur du Président @EmmanuelMacron et de Mme Macron par le Président Biden et Mme le Dr. Biden. Allies, partners, and friends 🇫🇷🇺🇲 pic.twitter.com/2TOJIR0NtT — Catherine Colonna (@MinColonna) December 1, 2022

1 December 2022

On the second day of his visit to the United States, President Emmanuel Macron met with President Joe Biden at the White House.

Joint Statement by President Biden and President Macron

🔴 LIVE FROM WASHINGTON｜Joint press conference by Presidents @EmmanuelMacron 🇫🇷 and @JoeBiden 🇺🇸 on the occasion of President Macron's state visit to the United States. https://t.co/EeBDd3O8Sh — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) December 1, 2022

During this state visit, the French Embassy in the United States sent to Paris its first encrypted diplomatic message thanks to a new generation of so-called post-quantum cryptography, with the aim of withstanding the decryption capabilities of quantum computers

Read the Statement

Got it, @franceintheus ! The French Embassy in Washington has sent the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs its first post-quantum cryptographic diplomatic message. @MinColonna Statement: https://t.co/KGDnW5cCx2 https://t.co/5gU7PRwxOw — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) December 1, 2022

30 November 2022

LIVE | Connection with @NASA Headquarters. First stop of President @EmmanuelMacron 's State visit to the United States of America, with Vice President @KamalaHarris and space stakeholders. https://t.co/qZzbmHQ67g — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) November 30, 2022

LIVE | On Capitol Hill in Washington, President @EmmanuelMacron meets with stakeholders in biodiversity conservation, energy and climate change, and new innovative financing. Listen to his opening remarks: https://t.co/legaWANdJ8 — France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) November 30, 2022

Émouvante cérémonie au Cimetière national d'Arlington, dans le cadre de la visite d'État du Président @EmmanuelMacron 🇫🇷🇺🇲 France and the United States are the oldest allies, they're also friends and partners eager to make this world a better place for all. pic.twitter.com/1GquClMXRL — Catherine Colonna (@MinColonna) November 30, 2022

Useful links

• France / United States (in French)
• More information on the website of the ministry
• Embassy of France in United States
• France and science
• Frenchculture.org - The official website of the Cultural Services of the French Embassy of the United States

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As Macron Pays State Visit to U.S., Ukraine Tests an Old Alliance

The French president goes to Washington with differences over how to end the war in Ukraine, and how to share its burdens, at the heart of talks with President Biden.

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By Roger Cohen

Follow our live coverage of Biden Hosting Macron at the White House .

PARIS — As if to demonstrate that old alliances prove their worth in times of war, President Emmanuel Macron of France will be feted this week in Washington on the first state visit by a foreign leader since President Biden took office.

The 21-gun salute and elaborate reception that will be accorded to Mr. Macron, starting Wednesday, reflect the resilience of the very old but sometimes fractious relationship between France and the United States. They also indicate the renewed centrality of Europe to American interests since the invasion of Ukraine by President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia nine months ago.

A world now living with Mr. Putin’s nuclear blackmail is a changed world, where the ideals of liberty, democracy and universal human rights, central to both American and French identity, are directly threatened.

“The state visit is symbolically significant as the return of the trans-Atlantic relationship to the center of American strategy in the world, and it’s notable that the country getting the first nod is France, not Germany or Britain,” said Charles Kupchan, a professor of international affairs at Georgetown University.

Mr. Macron’s restlessness, as he seeks some new “security architecture” for Europe and greater “strategic autonomy” for the continent rather than continued dependence on the United States for defense, has at times been an irritant to the Biden administration. But at a moment when the United States needs a strong Europe it has no more forceful interlocutor than the French president.

Britain marginalized itself through Brexit, for which it has paid a heavy price, and Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, took office only last month. Olaf Scholz, the cautious German chancellor with whom Mr. Macron has an uneasy relationship, has not yet developed anything resembling the broad European authority of his predecessor, Angela Merkel.

The war in Ukraine will be at the heart of talks between Mr. Biden and Mr. Macron, with subtle differences certain to surface, both in how to end the fighting and how to share the burden of the conflict’s harsh impact on Western economies.

“We have a demanding political dialogue in the sense that we are allies who are not aligned, if I may put it that way,” said a senior adviser to Mr. Macron, who declined to be named in line with French diplomatic practice.

Mr. Macron, while emphasizing that Ukraine recover its full sovereignty and accusing Moscow of an “imperial” invasion, has repeatedly insisted that the war must end at the negotiating table, not on the battlefield. The French president recently said that he would soon talk again with Mr. Putin, a conversation he has maintained throughout the war.

President Biden has been more emphatic on the need for Ukraine to win the war, insisting that only the Ukrainians can decide when they should stop fighting, although in recent weeks, as winter approaches, the idea of negotiation has gained some ground.

Gen. Mark A. Milley, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, suggested this month that a “dialogue box” may have opened with the Russian withdrawal from the southern city of Kherson. But senior officials close to Mr. Biden have made clear they do not think the moment is ripe.

In practice, with Ukraine ascendant on the battlefield and determined to keep recapturing Russian-occupied land, no avenue for talks seems to exist for the moment. The “good cop, bad cop” routine, combining Mr. Macron’s outreach to Moscow with Mr. Biden’s resolve that Mr. Putin be denied victory, appears likely to endure, bolstered by a shared determination to avoid escalation.

In the week leading up to Mr. Macron’s visit, French ministers and officials have expressed growing exasperation with what they see as unfair economic competition from the United States.

It is only 14 months since France briefly recalled its ambassador to Washington in fury at a secretive deal reached by Mr. Biden to help Australia deploy nuclear-powered submarines. The agreement, which also involved Britain, scuttled an earlier French contract to provide conventional submarines.

Intense diplomacy laid the dispute to rest as Mr. Biden called U.S. actions “clumsy.” But other economic differences have since emerged. Europe has none of America’s self-sufficiency in energy and is bearing the brunt of the soaring prices the war has caused, as it scrambles to find new sources of oil and gas.

In particular, France has taken aim at aspects of the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, including massive subsidies to American green industries, which France believes could lead European companies to relocate to the United States.

“We want a loyal and strategic form of competition,” the adviser to Mr. Macron said. The buzzword of French officials is “synchronization” of the economic response to the war.

“China favors its own production, America privileges its own production,” Bruno Le Maire, the French economy minister, told France 3 television on Sunday. “It’s perhaps time that Europe favor its own production.” Mr. Macron’s government is determined to push a “Buy Europe” campaign.

The Biden Administration contends that its legislation will expand the pie for clean energy investments, not split it up in ways damaging to Europe. It also expects that even with incentives for domestic manufacturing, the U.S. economy will continue to rely on imports of renewable energy technologies.

A task force chaired by senior officials from the White House and the European Commission has already been created to engage with Europe on its concerns about American subsidies — something French officials have not alluded to over the past week.

President Biden, who will soon face a Republican-controlled House, seems very unlikely to budge on one of his signature achievements.

This will be the second state visit by President Macron, 44, after former President Trump invited him in 2018. Then he was a fresh face, a young man still hoping in vain to charm Mr. Trump and so sway him toward staying in the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate accords.

Today, the sheen is off and Mr. Macron is struggling to give direction to his second term . The president still tends to get ahead of himself sometimes, and nations on the fringe of Russia, including Poland and the Baltic States, which knew Soviet totalitarian rule, do not share his belief that Mr. Putin’s Russia can somehow be integrated one day into a new European security structure.

“With a surer grip on a highly differentiated Europe, Macron would gain a lot more traction,” said Constanze Stelzenmüller, the director of the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution. “He too often veers toward the philosophical in a way that is politically tone deaf.”

But as the leader who twice won elections keeping the extreme right from power, and the boldest innovator in Europe, Mr. Macron is essential to Mr. Biden’s core global objective: that democracies prevail over autocracies, not least Russia and China.

Roger Cohen is the Paris bureau chief of The Times. He was a columnist from 2009 to 2020. He has worked for The Times for more than 30 years and has served as a foreign correspondent and foreign editor. Raised in South Africa and Britain, he is a naturalized American. More about Roger Cohen

Our Coverage of the War in Ukraine

News and Analysis

Russian missiles streaked into Kyiv  in the biggest assault on the Ukrainian capital in weeks, injuring several people and damaging several buildings.

Jake Sullivan, President Biden’s top national security official, made a secret trip to Kyiv to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and reaffirm the United States’ unwavering commitment to Ukraine.

Under pressure to come up with billions of dollars to support Ukraine’s military, the E.U. said that it had devised a legal way to use frozen Russian assets  to help arm Ukraine.

Symbolism or Strategy?: Ukrainians say that defending places with little strategic value is worth the cost in casualties and weapons , because the attacking Russians pay an even higher price. American officials aren’t so sure.

Elaborate Tales: As the Ukraine war grinds on, the Kremlin has created increasingly complex fabrications online  to discredit Ukraine’s leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, and undermine the country’s support in the West.

Targeting Russia’s Oil Industry: With its army short of ammunition and troops to break the deadlock on the battlefield, Kyiv has increasingly taken the fight beyond the Ukrainian border, attacking oil infrastructure deep in Russian territory .

How We Verify Our Reporting

Our team of visual journalists analyzes satellite images, photographs , videos and radio transmissions  to independently confirm troop movements and other details.

We monitor and authenticate reports on social media, corroborating these with eyewitness accounts and interviews. Read more about our reporting efforts .

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State Visit by President and Mrs. Macron (Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, 2022)

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden host President Emmanuel Macron and Mrs. Brigitte Macron of France for a State Visit to the United States, including a state dinner, on December 1, 2022.

This is the first State Visit of the Biden-Harris Administration. It underscores the deep and enduring relationship between the United States and France–the oldest allies–that is founded on our shared democratic values, economic ties, and defense and security cooperation. The leaders discuss together our continued close partnership on shared global challenges and areas of bilateral interest.

The State Visit marked a very special moment in our bilateral relationship. The President of France had extremely substantive discussions with his counterpart, President Joe Biden, which led to the publication of this important  joint statement. He also met with members of civil society and Congressional leaders to confer on climate change and biodiversity. He chaired working meetings on the topics that will shape the future of our partnership with the United States: space, civilian nuclear energy, and tech. During the second half of his visit, President Macron gave a keynote speech on French language and culture in New Orleans, Louisiana.

A longstanding alliance and friendship between France and the United States

August 30, 2023

Embassy/Press Office

President Macron’s State visit: New Orleans

December 9, 2022

New Orleans

“French For All” – A new comprehensive initiative to support equity in access to French language education in the United States

President Macron’s State visit: Day 3 – New Orleans [part 1/2]

President Macron’s State visit: Day 3 – New Orleans [part 2/2]

President Macron’s State visit: Meeting with the French community

President Macron’s State visit: Award of Medals to WWII Veterans

President Macron’s State Visit: Civil nuclear roundtable

President Macron’s State visit: State lunch

President Macron’s State visit: Arlington Cemetery

President Macron’s State Visit: The arrival

Blair House Senior Executive Chef James Sinopoli speaks ahead of President Macron’s State Visit

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While access to this resource is free, reproducing texts and images requires prior authorization from content producers. We do not manage copyrights from external sources and bear no responsibility for content.

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Biden hosts French President Macron for the first state visit of his administration

President Biden will host a state dinner for France's President Emmanuel Macron. NPR's A Martinez talks to Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer of the German Marshall Fund, about the countries' relations.

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

President Biden is hosting his first state visit this week for his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron. Relations between the U.S. and France are strong, but there are points of tension. France vocally challenges some U.S. policies where other European partners can be a little more subtle. But France's outspokenness also helps to explain why Paris is such a strong, old ally of Washington. For insight on what's at stake during Macron's first state visit, we turn to Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, director of the German Marshall Fund's Paris office. Alexandra, first off, what do you think will be the No. 1 point of discussion between Biden and Macron?

ALEXANDRA DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Well, I think the energy and the trade agenda is going to be the No. 1. And President Macron will really serve as, if I can call him that way, the European special envoy to prepare the ground for the following Trade and Tech Council, which will actually take place, as well, in Washington on December 5. So there's a sort of diplomatic sequence where Macron will try to play a role trying to negotiate - but there are very little chances that he will get some - some limited exemptions for certain European industries, to the same way that Canadian and Mexican industries have been exempted from certain measures in the Inflation and Reduction Act. So that, I would say, is the top, I would say, difficult agenda. And then the second piece is Ukraine. And there, what I see happening is a (speaking French), a kind of a growing convergence between the U.S. and French perspectives when it comes to pushing Kyiv for negotiations, especially as we are entering the winter period.

MARTÍNEZ: That unofficial title you gave him - European special envoy - it seems like Macron, over the last few years, has really taken that and run with it. He seems to like to be in the center of the action. I remember his meetings with Vladimir Putin.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: That's also because, I would say, the European political landscape has truly changed after Brexit. You also have a Germany which is much more hesitant in the midst of what I would call a sort of identity crisis on many issues - its relation with Russia, its relation with China, its industrial policy, its energy dependencies. And so France, I would say by default, stands out as a key player in the European landscape and therefore as a key interlocutor for Washington. And that's why Macron finds himself, again, going as, you know, the first leader in the state visit to Washington.

MARTÍNEZ: Where do you see the biggest area of disagreement between Biden and Macron on how to deal with Russia and the invasion in Ukraine?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Well, I think this is where I see, really, a growing convergence. You know, if you listened to what John Kirby said yesterday, it was very revealing, you know, saying that he valued and applauded, to a certain extent, Macron's willingness to continue to speak and dialogue with Vladimir Putin. And so this is where I think France, on the Ukraine-Russia dossier, has an added value to say, you know, it might be useful for you, Washington, that I play that sort of diplomatic in-between role, such as in the Indo-Pacific. You know, France has this idea of portraying itself as a balancing power or third way in the U.S.-China competition. And this is also a way for Macron to say, you know, we're not taking a different position from the American position vis-a-vis China, but we are offering you a parallel track, a complementary tract, that Americans might indeed find very helpful in the competition with China.

MARTÍNEZ: You know, state dinners tend to include a lot of pomp and circumstance. There's that elaborate dinner at the White House. I mean, what talk actually gets done during these state visits? Why do they matter, Alexandra?

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Well, they do matter because, I mean, in France's case, I would qualify France as a rigorous ally of the United States. And you said it in your introduction rightly. France is a challenging partner for the United States and therefore, I would say, an even more important, crucial partner for Washington. It says out loud what other European partners think and is also very vocal about U.S.-European disagreements. So what I expect in the Biden-Macron conversation is, in fact, a very direct and frank conversation.

MARTÍNEZ: That's Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer - directs the German Marshall Fund's Paris office. Thank you.

DE HOOP SCHEFFER: Thank you.

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France’s Macron gets a ceremonial welcome in Sweden at the start of a 2-day state visit

French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference with Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf inspect the Grenadier Guards of the Life Guards during a welcome ceremony at the Inner Courtyard of the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, center left, and his wife Brigitte Macron, right, pose for a photo with Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf, center right, and Queen Silvia, left, at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson hold a press conference in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and King Carl Gustaf deliver a press statement at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

The Grenadier Guards of the Life Guards at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf inspect the Grenadier Guards of the Life Guards during a welcome ceremony at the Inner Courtyard of the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, center left, and his wife Brigitte Macron, 3rd right, pose for a group photo with Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf, center right, Queen Silvia,, 3rd left, Crown Princess Victoria, 2nd right, Prince Daniel, right, Princess Sofia, left, and Prince Carl Philip, 2nd left, at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

Sweden’s Queen Silvia, right, and Brigitte Macron, wife of French President Emmanuel Macron, during a welcome ceremony at the Inner Courtyard of the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday Jan. 30, 2024. France’s President Emmanuel Macron started a two-day state visit in Stockholm during which he will meet Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and the country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf. (Claudio Bresciani/TT via AP)

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STOCKHOLM (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron was welcomed Tuesday with pomp and ceremony at the start of a two-day state visit to Sweden during which he met with Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and the Scandinavian country’s monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf.

Macron and his wife, Brigitte, were greeted by the king in the inner courtyard of the downtown Stockholm royal castle that is the official residence of the Swedish royals. There, Macron and Carl Gustaf reviewed members of the Grenadier Guards that had lined up.

Macron noted that it had been too long since a French president visited Sweden — the last time was in 2000, when Jacques Chirac traveled to the Scandinavian country.

“My visit is therefore first and foremost to renew our friendship, our partnership in the European Union, and as Sweden prepares to join NATO, our alliance,” Macron said.

Asked about doubts about future U.S. support for Ukraine, Macron said he was “convinced that the next few months are decisive” and stressed that Ukraine is mainly a European issue.

“Ukraine is on European soil. It is a European country. And if we want a peaceful and stable Europe, we need to be credible in terms of our own security and defense vis-à-vis all our neighbors,” Macron said at a news conference with Kristersson.

Later Tuesday, Macron and his hosts are to discuss the future of European security at a military academy in Stockholm. Russia’s war on Ukraine and Sweden’s NATO application are likely to be on the table.

After more than a year of delays, Turkey earlier this month completed its ratification of Sweden’s bid to join NATO , meaning Hungary is now the last member of the military alliance not to have given its approval. All NATO countries must agree before a new member can join the alliance.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Sweden and neighboring Finland abandoned their traditional positions of military nonalignment to seek protection under NATO’s security umbrella. Finland joined the alliance last year.

On Wednesday, Macron and his wife are to travel to Malmo, Sweden’s third largest city, in southern Sweden, where they will visit a European multidisciplinary research facility under construction and visit a company to discuss green technologies.

At home, Macron’s government faces angry farmers who have camped out around Paris. They demand better pay, fewer constraints and lower costs. On Monday, they encircled Paris with traffic-snarling barricades, using hundreds of tractors and hay bales to block highways leading to the capital.

The French president initially was to travel to Sweden in late October, but the visit was postponed due to the Gaza war that began with Hamas’ attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7.

This story has been corrected to show that the last French president to visit Sweden was Jacques Chirac in 2000, not Francois Hollande in 2014.

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Lula and Macron to visit Amazon rainforest in Belém

For the first time in brazil, the french leader will visit four cities.

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Published on 26/03/2024 - 10:42 By Pedro Rafael Vilela - Agência Brasil - Brasília

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Macron's itinerary includes visits to Itaguaí, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Brasília, with his stay lasting until Thursday (28). Ambassador Maria Luísa Escorel, Secretary for Europe and North America at the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated during a press conference with journalists last week, “A three-day visit is uncommon for a head of state. This is an indication of the significance of the Brazil-France relationship, of the exchange [between both countries], of the deep interest across various sectors.

In Belém, both presidents will board a Navy boat to Combu Island, on the south bank of the Guamá River, to observe the artisanal and sustainable production of cocoa in the forest. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Lula aims to demonstrate to President Macron the complexity of the Amazon issue and the sustainable economic development alternatives available. Furthermore, Lula intends to highlight that the Amazon is not merely a vast forest but also home to approximately 25 million inhabitants, whose survival depends on the forest. The presidents will also hold a private meeting with indigenous representatives. During this meeting, President Macron is expected to award a commendation to Raoni Metuktire, a prominent indigenous leader of the Kayapó ethnic group and a global advocate for indigenous causes.

Later today (26), from Belém, Lula and Macron will head to Rio de Janeiro, where they will stay overnight. On Wednesday (27), they will depart by helicopter from the Copacabana Fort to Itaguaí, where they will inaugurate the third submarine constructed at the Navy Naval Complex as part of the Submarine Program. This program is the result of a cooperation agreement between the governments of Brazil and France and aims to build a total of five submarines, with the final one expected to be delivered in a few years. During their meeting, Lula and Macron will discuss the continuation of this partnership, as well as a program to produce military helicopters and nuclear energy for civilian use.

Meeting and dinner

After their agenda in Rio, President Lula will return to Brasília, while Macron will travel to São Paulo to continue his visit to Brazil. There, the French president will participate in the Brazil-France Economic Forum on Wednesday (27) at the headquarters of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp). The forum will be attended by approximately 50 French businesspeople, including the Vice President of Brazil, Geraldo Alckmin.

In 2023, the two countries recorded a trade flow of $8.4 billion, with $2.9 billion in exports and $5.5 billion in imports.

Brazilian exports to France include products such as soybean meal, crude oils, petroleum, cellulose, and iron ore. On the French side, the main products imported by Brazil are engines, machinery, aircraft, and manufactured goods.

According to data from the Brazilian Central Bank, France is the third-largest investor in Brazil, with investments exceeding $38 billion. Additionally, there are approximately 860 French companies operating in Brazil, creating 500,000 jobs.

After the business meeting, Macron is expected to attend a dinner with Brazilian artists and cultural personalities, including singer-songwriter Chico Buarque. The possibility of the French president walking along Avenida Paulista and visiting the São Paulo Museum of Art (Masp) has not been ruled out. His agenda also includes a meeting with members of the French community in Brazil and the inauguration of a unit of the Pasteur laboratory at the University of São Paulo (USP). Macron will spend Wednesday night in São Paulo and, the following day, he will embark on the last leg of his trip, a state visit to Brasília.

State visit

In the federal capital, Brasília, Macron will be received with the honors befitting a head of state and will meet with Lula at the Planalto presidential palace. The meeting will focus on bilateral and global issues, including cultural matters, as 2025 marks 200 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Topics such as the reform of multilateral institutions, including Brazil's bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, as well as the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, are expected to be discussed. The political situation in Venezuela and the humanitarian crisis in Haiti will also be on the agenda.

A sensitive topic between Brazil and France, likely to be sidestepped during Macron's visit, is the ongoing negotiations regarding the free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union. Macron expressed his opposition to the agreement at the end of last year.

"This visit is not about that. Negotiations have been paused due to the European Parliament elections. The focus is on the strategic bilateral relationship between these two countries. The focus is on convergences, not divergences," stated Brazilian ambassador Maria Luísa Escorel.

Translation: Mário Nunes -  Edition: Graça Adjuto

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Macron awards Chief Raoni highest honor of France

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Both leaders will carry out an extensive bilateral agenda, covering topics such as the environment, defense, and the reform of multilateral organizations.

Supreme Court upholds arrest of suspects in Marielle Franco’s death

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Wednesday, March 27, 2024 6:47 am (Paris)

Macron and Lula launch green investment plan for Amazon

The announcement made at the start of Macron's state visit to Brazil is part of an international roadmap the two leaders intend to promote in the run-up to the COP30 environmental summit which will be held in Belem in northern Brazil in 2025.

Le Monde with AFP

Time to 2 min.

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French President Emmanuel Macron kicked off a visit to Brazil on Tuesday, March 26, with the launch of a billion-euro Amazonian green investment plan alongside his counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Their trip to the city of Belem, the host of 2025 UN climate talks, makes Macron the first French president to visit Brazil in 11 years, seeking a fresh start after spats with former president Jair Bolsonaro over environmental destruction and insults directed at his wife, Brigitte Macron.

The investment plan aims to raise "1 billion euros [$1.08 billion] of public and private investment over the next four years," according to a roadmap published by the French presidency ahead of next year's COP30 summit.

The leaders are seeking to promote "a great public and private global investment plan into the bioeconomy" in the Brazilin and Guyanese Amazon, the announcement said, especially as Brazil presides over the G20 for 2024.

France, the seventh largest economy in the world, and Brazil, the ninth largest, are considered key players in a geopolitical scene marked by rivalry between China and the United States. Paris sees Brasilia as a bridge to large emerging economies whose voices Brazil is trying to amplify through its presidency of the G20 and membership of the BRICS+ group.

"We are living in a Franco-Brazilian moment," the Elysée Palace said earlier, highlighting "many points of convergence" with Lula, particularly on "major global issues." "France is an essential, unavoidable actor for Brazilian foreign policy," said the head of Brazilian diplomacy for Europe, Maria Luisa Escorel de Moraes.

Amazon chief to be honored

Tuesday's announcement proposes the creation of a "carbon market," intended to reward countries that invest in natural carbon sinks, such as the Amazon rainforest. The world's largest tropical forest plays a key role in the fight against climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide emissions. Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon halved in 2023 after soaring under Bolsonaro, as Lula's government stepped up environmental policing.

The agreement also includes support for "indigenous people and local Amazon communities, which have an essential role in protecting biodiversity through their traditional knowledge and forest management practices," according to the announcement.

In Belem, Macron awarded tribal chief Raoni Metuktire with the Legion of Honor, the highest French distinction, for his role as an "international figure in the fight for the preservation of the Amazon rainforest and the culture of indigenous peoples," according to the French presidency. "The fight" for the forest and its peoples, "I wanted to say that we will continue to wage it alongside you," Macron told the chief.

Metuktire left his home in the Amazon more than 30 years ago to travel the world with his warning of the threats posed by the destruction of the rainforest. A striking figure with his large wooden lip plate and yellow feather headdress, he has taken his message to popes, royals and presidents, with his stature as an environmental campaigner rising with growing awareness of the climate emergency.

Mercosur and Ukraine

France and Brazil are working together to manufacture four conventionally powered submarines, the third of which will be launched on Wednesday by both leaders at the Itaguai naval base, near Rio de Janeiro. Brasilia could also call on Paris to help it develop nuclear propulsion on a fifth submarine.

Then there are the more sticky topics, such as the long-stalled free trade agreement between the European Union and South America's Mercosur bloc, which has recently run into fierce resistance from European farmers. Macron said in January that France opposes the deal because it "doesn't make Mercosur farmers and companies abide by the same rules as ours."

While Lula is expected to reiterate his call for the rapid signing of the deal, both Paris and Brasilia have indicated the two-decade-old negotiations would not be a major focus of Macron's trip.

The war in Ukraine, which Macron wants to be a key focus of the G20, is another point of contention. Lula, who has positioned himself as a champion of the "global South," has insisted that Kyiv and Moscow share responsibility over the conflict and has refused to take a stand against Russia.

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Putin says radical Islamists carried out Moscow concert hall attack but doubles down on blaming Ukraine – as it happened

This live blog is now closed. For the latest on the Moscow concert hall attack, read our latest report:

• Putin says radical Islamists carried out Moscow attack but maintains claim Ukraine was involved
• 1d ago Summary
• 1d ago Putin says concert hall attack 'part of Kyiv regime's attacks Russia'
• 2d ago Three more people detained as 'preventive measure'
• 2d ago Summary of the day so far...
• 2d ago France to mobilise more soldiers for anti-terrorism unit in wake of Moscow concert hall shooting
• 2d ago Russian diplomat fails to attend foreign ministry in Warsaw despite being summoned
• 2d ago Russia launches 700 bombs against Ukraine over last week - foreign ministry
• 2d ago Russian PM: those behind concert hall shooting 'don't deserve mercy'
• 2d ago Macron: evidence points to Islamic State being behind Moscow concert hall attack
• 2d ago Kremlin says its not joining death penalty debate after concert hall attack
• 2d ago Kyiv is rocked by explosions as Russia attacks Ukraine with 'hypersonic missiles'
• 2d ago Russian landing ship 'critically damaged' by Ukrainian missile strike - military intelligence
• 2d ago Kremlin questions Islamic State responsibility for concert hall attack

Putin says concert hall attack 'part of Kyiv regime's attacks Russia'

Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, said that the Moscow concert hall attack is “part of Kyiv regime’s attacks on Russia”, Reuters reported.

In remarks made on Monday, Putin conceded that the attacks were committed by Islamic State, but added that officials do not know “who ordered it”.

“We’re interested in who benefits from it,” Putin said, adding that the attack is an “act of intimidation”.

That concludes today’s updates on the ongoing war in Ukraine .

Here’s what happened today:

Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, said that the Moscow concert hall attack is “part of K yiv regime’s attacks on Russia” . In remarks made Monday, Putin called the attack an “act of intimidation” and said that Russian officials are “interested in who benefits from it”.

Three more people were detained as a “preventive measure” in connection with the Moscow concert hall attack . The three men were detained after being accused of committing crimes under Russia’s Terrorist Act.

Some of the gunmen accused of carrying out the attack were briefly in Turkey to renew their Russian residence permits , Reuters reported, citing a Turkish security official. The Turkish official added that the men were not radicalized in Turkey.

The White House dismissed Russia’s claims that the attack is linked to Ukraine, calling the assertion “Kremlin propaganda” . On Monday, White House spokesperson John Kirby addressed the accusation, saying: “There was no linkage to Ukraine ... This is just more Kremlin propaganda.”

The cost of repairing the damage caused by Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure last week will probably run into the “billions” , the country’s energy minister said. In terms of the cost of repairs, “the real figures will be after assessment of the damage but I think it is in the region of billions, for sure,” German Gerashchenko told reporters.

Thank you for following today’s latest news.

The Moscow concert hall attack poses new questions for Russia’s intelligence agencies , Reuters reports.

More from Reuters:

Russia’s security state has been ruthlessly effective at detaining Vladimir Putin’s opponents but was caught off guard by a mass shooting near Moscow, raising questions about its priorities, resources and intelligence gathering. Charged with hunting down Ukrainian saboteurs inside Russia, with keeping anti-Kremlin activists in check, and with disrupting the operations of hostile foreign intelligence agencies, the FSB, the main successor agency to the Soviet-era KGB, has its hands full. That, say former US intelligence officials and Western security analysts, helps explain why it may have overlooked other threats, including that posed by Islamist militants, such as ISIS-K, which claimed responsibility for the attack. “You can’t do everything,” Daniel Hoffman, a former senior CIA operations officer who served as the agency’s Moscow station chief, told Reuters. “It’s possible they’re overextended dealing with the war in Ukraine and dealing with political opposition. This one slipped through the cracks.” The FSB has said Friday’s concert hall attack was “painstakingly” planned and that the gunmen had carefully hidden their weapons. Putin on Monday said that radical Islamists were the ones who had carried out the attack, but said that Russia still wanted to understand who had ordered it and said there were many questions for Ukraine to answer. Ukraine denies any involvement.

The full article is available here .

Putin added that the Moscow concert hall attack fits into a larger trend of intimidation from Ukraine , Reuters reported.

Here are more of Putin’s remarks:

This atrocity may be just a link in a whole series of attempts by those who have been at war with our country since 2014 by the hands of the neo-Nazi Kyiv regime … [Those who planned the attack] hoped to sow panic and discord in our society, but they met unity and determination to resist this evil.

The gunmen accused of carrying out the Moscow concert hall attack were briefly in Turkey to renew their Russian residence permits , Reuters reported, citing a Turkish security official.

The official, who spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, said that two of the accused attackers had traveled to Turkey briefly, but had been living in Moscow for a long period of time.

The men left on 2 March, more than two weeks before the 22 March shooting.

There were no arrest warrants for the men at that time, allowing them to travel between Russia and Turkey freely.

The unnamed official also told Reuters that the radicalization of the accused gunmen did not happen in Turkey.

Three more people detained as 'preventive measure'

Three more people have been detained as a “preventive measure” in connection with the Moscow concert hall attack .

Isroil Ibragimovich Islomov, Dilovar Isroilovich Islomov, and Aminchon Isroilovich Islomov were all detained after being accused of committing crimes under Russia’s Terrorist Act, according to a post on Telegram from the courts of general jurisdiction of the city of Moscow.

The three men will be detained until until 22 May 2024.

The White House has dismissed Russia’s claims that the Moscow concert hall attack is linked to Ukraine, calling the assertion “Kremlin propaganda” .

On Monday, White House spokesperson John Kirby addressed the accusation from Russian officials that the attack is connected to Ukraine , Reuters reported.

“There was no linkage to Ukraine ... This is just more Kremlin propaganda,” Kirby said to reporters during the briefing.

Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, is expected to meet with members of his security council later today to discuss Russia’s reaction to the Moscow concert hall shooting in which at least 137 people were killed.

The Kremlin has so far declined to comment on growing evidence that the Afghan branch of Islamic State (IS), known as Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), masterminded the terrorist attack on the Crocus City concert hall on Friday.

Putin has claimed without evidence that Ukraine had aided the attackers and had planned to “open a window” for the gunmen to escape. Kyiv has denied any involvement in the attack. We will bring you the latest on the security council meeting as we get more information on it.

Summary of the day so far...

There were reports of several explosions rocking the centre of Kyiv this morning, with Ukraine’s air force saying it had shot down two ballistic missiles targeting the Ukrainian capital. “Again this morning Russia is attacking Ukraine with hypersonic missiles. Loud explosions in Kyiv,” the US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink , wrote in a post on X. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba , and the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy , reiterated calls asking international allies to supply more air defences to Ukraine in the wake of the attack.

Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, called into question assertions by the US that IS was behind Friday’s Crocus City concert hall attack in Moscow, in which at least 137 people were killed. “Attention – a question to the White House: Are you sure it’s Isis? Might you think again about that?” Zakharova said in an article for the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper. Russia’s prime minister, Mikhail Mishustin , said the investigation is still ongoing into the Moscow concert hall shooting but vowed that “the perpetrators will be punished” and that “they do not deserve mercy”.

France’s president, Emmanuel Macron , said all signs indicated that the attack was carried out by Islamic State , adding that it would be “cynical and counterproductive” for Russia to try to blame Kyiv. Macron said the Islamic State group that claimed responsibility for the Moscow attack had also tried to commit attacks in France. The country’s prime minister, Gabriel Attal , meanwhile, said that France would increase the numbers of soldiers for its Operation Sentinelle unit , which deals with handling terrorist threats. Attal said an extra 4,000 members of the military would be put on standby for the Sentinelle division.

Dmitry Medvedev , Russia’s former president and prime minister, discussed the suspects charged over the terrorist attack on the Crocus City concert hall on his Telegram channel . “Everyone asks me. What to do? They were caught. Well done to everyone who caught it,” he wrote. “Should they be killed? Necessary. And it will be. But it is much more important to kill everyone involved. Everyone. Who paid, who sympathized, who helped. Kill them all.” The Kremlin said on Monday that it would not participate in conversations about lifting the moratorium on the death penalty.

Poland’s foreign ministry said on Monday that the Russian ambassador in Warsaw failed to show for a summons issued after a Russian cruise missile breached Polish airspace over the weekend. Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Sergei Andreyev , told state-run RIA Novosti that he did not visit the foreign ministry since, he said, the Polish side did not provide evidence of any airspace violation.

Ukraine’s foreign ministry said Russia had launched 190 missiles, 140 drones and 700 aerial bombs against Ukraine over the last week.

One of the Russian landing ships hit during a recent missile strike on occupied Crimea was “critically damaged”, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) said. The Ukrainian military claimed on Sunday it had hit two large Russian landing ships as well as other infrastructure used by the Russian navy in the Black Sea during overnight strikes on the annexed Crimean peninsula. In a post on Telegram on Monday , Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said the “Yamal” suffered a “hole in the upper deck that caused it to roll to the starboard side”.

The cost of repairing the damage caused by Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure last week will probably run into the “billions”, the country’s energy minister has been quoted as saying.

In terms of the cost of repairs, “the real figures will be after assessment of the damage but I think it is in the region of billions, for sure”, German Gerashchenko told reporters.

More than a million Ukrainians have been left without power on Friday after Russia launched one of its largest missile and drone attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure to date.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 88 missiles and 63 Iranian-made Shahed drones. Of them, 37 and 55 respectively were shot down, but others hit the country’s largest dam and caused blackouts in several regions.

You can read more about the major assault on Ukraine’s energy system here:

The attack on a Moscow concert hall that killed more than 130 people has raised fresh security fears for the Paris Olympics, which begin on 26 July.

The French interior minister, Gérald Darmanin , said that the Paris Olympics were an obvious future target.

“France, because we defend universal values, and are for secularism … is particularly threatened, notably during extraordinary events such as the Olympics,” he told reporters.

“The French police, gendarmes, prefects, intelligence services, will be ready,” he added, saying that “we have a very effective intelligence system. We stop plots developing almost every month.”

The heads of intelligence services would hold a meeting on Thursday “to discuss all the conclusions of the attack on Moscow,” he added.

France to mobilise more soldiers for anti-terrorism unit in wake of Moscow concert hall shooting

France will increase the numbers of soldiers for its Operation Sentinelle unit , which deals with handling terrorist threats, the country’s prime minister, Gabriel Attal , said.

Attal said an extra 4,000 members of the military would be put on standby for the Sentinelle division, on top of the 3,000 military staff already on deployment for Sentinelle, which guards sites such as railway stations, places of worship, schools and theatres across the country.

On Sunday, the French government raised its terror alert warning to its highest level after the terrorist attack on the Crocus City concert hall in Moscow that left at least 137 people dead.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has warned Russia against blaming Kyiv for the massacre, saying that such a move would be “cynical” and “counterproductive” (see earlier post at 11.05 for more details).

Russian diplomat fails to attend foreign ministry in Warsaw despite being summoned

The Russian ambassador did not attend the foreign ministry in Warsaw despite being summoned to do so, a Polish spokesperson said on Monday, after a Russian missile flew into Poland’s airspace.

Russia violated Poland’s airspace early on Sunday with a cruise missile launched at targets in western Ukraine , Poland’s armed forces said.

“The ambassador of the Russian Federation … did not attend the foreign ministry today to explain the incident concerning the Russian cruise missile that violated Polish airspace on 24 March,” foreign ministry spokesperson Pawel Wronski told reporters.

Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Sergei Andreyev , told state-run RIA Novosti that he did not visit the foreign ministry since the Polish side did not provide evidence of any airspace violation.

This is not the first such reported violation of Polish territory.

According to the general staff of the Polish armed forces, a Russian missile entered the airspace of the Nato member at the end of December .

In April 2023, a military object was found in a forest close to the village of Zamość near the northern city of Bydgoszcz. It was later reported to be a Russian missile.

In November 2022, a stray Ukrainian missile struck the Polish village of Przewodów in the south, killing two people and raising fears at the time of the war in Ukraine spilling over the border.

Russia launches 700 bombs against Ukraine over last week - foreign ministry

“Our sky defenders shoot down practically all targets, but even the most agile need support to defend our people from Russia’s terror,” the ministry said in a post on X.

❗️ Over just one week, Russia launched 190 missiles of various types, 140 drones & 700 aerial bombs against #Ukraine . Our sky defenders shoot down practically all targets, but even the most agile need support to defend our people from Russia's terror. #ArmUkraineNow pic.twitter.com/jWnwMRiGfX — MFA of Ukraine 🇺🇦 (@MFA_Ukraine) March 25, 2024

Both Russia and Ukraine have increased the tempo of their air attacks in recent weeks as Kyiv, which has struggled to find weapons and soldiers after more than two years of war, has promised to retaliate by taking the fighting to Russian soil.

Russian PM: those behind concert hall shooting 'don't deserve mercy'

Russia’s prime minister, Mikhail Mishustin , said the investigation is still ongoing into the Moscow concert hall shooting but vowed that “the perpetrators will be punished” and that “they do not deserve mercy”.

The attack on Friday night on Crocus City Hall on the western outskirts of Moscow left 137 people dead and over 180 injured, proving to be the deadliest in Russia in years. A total of 97 people remain hospitalised, officials said.

The suspects, identified as Saidakrami Murodali Rachabalizoda, Dalerdzhon Barotovich Mirzoyev, Shamsidin Fariduni and Muhammadsobir Fayzov, face charges of a “terror attack committed by a group of individuals resulting in a person’s death”, according to the Tass news agency. All four reportedly pleaded guilty .

Russia’s ambassador to Poland did not go to the foreign ministry despite being summoned on Monday, a spokesperson for the ministry said, Reuters reported.

The ambassador was called in after a Russian missile entered Poland’s airspace on Sunday.

The US embassy in Budapest has published a video taking aim at Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó ’s latest trip to Russia , pointing out that other countries in the region have reduced their dependency on Russian energy, while Hungary’s leadership has chosen not to do so.

Szijjártó Péter külügyminiszter Oroszországban tartózkodik egy energetikai konferencián. Ez már a hetedik oroszországi útja azóta, hogy Putyin lerohanta Ukrajnát. pic.twitter.com/3ApKy84aI9 — U.S. Embassy Budapest (@usembbudapest) March 25, 2024

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https://www.barrons.com/news/macron-to-tread-carefully-on-french-guiana-visit-79f39d0d

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Macron Treads Carefully On French Guiana Visit

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ADDS Macron quotes, fish market visit

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday kicked off a two-day visit to French Guiana, a suffering South American territory that is pushing for increased autonomy from Paris.

With an area the size of Portugal and 300,000 people, Guiana's woes include crime linked to illegal gold panning, poor transport links and stuttering agriculture and fisheries.

Macron's visit would see the president "in contact with the people" and "listening to elected officials", especially on their calls for reform of the territory's status, his office said.

Paris must "grant (Guiana) the same status as Corsica", the Mediterranean island set for autonomy in a planned constitutional reform, the territory's president Gabriel Serville said.

Marie Guevenoux, France's minister for overseas territories, has said it is up to Guiana's elected officials "to define what powers they want the territory to take on".

Macron's previous visit in 2017 was marred when he responded to a question about building a new hospital by saying that he was not "Father Christmas".

Five years later, 60 percent of French Guianans voted for Macron's presidential election opponent, far-right figurehead Marine Le Pen, when he stood for a second term.

This time, the president visited a fish market in the capital Cayenne and was going to see a farm, before heading toward the Brazilian border.

"Almost all" of the central government's promises towards Guiana had been kept, Macron said on arrival, with additional funds allocated "in just about every area".

This included the fight against drug trafficking, he said.

Decisions would be made "quickly" for agriculture, he said. "I share people's impatience," he said.

With food supply highly dependent on imports, Macron has promised to unveil plans for agriculture and fishing that would also maintain environmental protection.

"We refuse to choose between protecting the tropical forests and economic development," his office said, promising simpler regulations appropriate to Guiana.

Macron's last stop in Guiana will be the Kourou space centre, which aims to become "Europe's true spaceport" faced with growing international competition.

He will move on to Brazil on Tuesday for a state visit with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

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Putin taunts the West with 'first ever' visit to remote ice-covered 'frontier region' just 55 miles from the US - as Zelensky tries to drum up war support in Lithuania

• Chukotka is Russia's easternmost region, sharing a maritime border with Alaska

President Vladimir Putin  has arrived for his first-ever presidential visit to Chukotka in Russia 's Far East - just 55 miles from the US state of Alaska . 

Putin arrived in Anadyr, the local capital of the Chukotka region this morning after flying from Moscow some nine time zones away. 

Chukotka is the easternmost region of Russia, with a maritime border on the Bering Strait with Alaska.

The Russian president was met in Anadyr by a motorcade and was whisked away in a limousine amid frigid temperatures of -28C. 

It's the closest he has come to US soil since he met with President  Barack Obama in New York City in 2015.

Chukotka is so close to Alaska that Roman Abramovich - the ex-Chelsea FC owner - was reported to fly to Anchorage in Alaska for lunch when he was the governor of the region from 2001 - 2008.

Putin's visit comes at a time when US-Russian relations are at their lowest ebb in decades amid the war in Ukraine and a growing East-West divide. 

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today landed in Lithuania as part of an unannounced trip to the Baltic states to drum up more support for the conflict. 

Global war for control of the ARCTIC: Climate change is unlocking untapped natural resources, new trade routes... and a new international conflict that RUSSIA is already winning  

The three Baltic states - all former Soviet republics which are now EU and NATO members - are among Ukraine's staunchest allies.

'Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are our reliable friends and principled partners. Today, I arrived in Vilnius before going to Tallinn and Riga,' Zelensky said on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

'Security, EU and NATO integration, cooperation on electronic warfare and drones, and further coordination of European support are all on the agenda,' he said.

The Baltic tour marks Zelensky's first official trip abroad this year.

In Lithuania, a key donor to Ukraine, Zelensky said he will hold talks with the president, prime minister and the speaker of parliament, and meet with the Ukrainian community.

The visit comes as other Kyiv allies waver on fresh aid, nearly two years into Russia's invasion.

Ukraine has come under intense Russian shelling in recent weeks, retaliating with strikes on Russia's border city of Belgorod.

Zelensky has urged allies to keep military support flowing and held in-person talks with officials from the United States, Germany and Norway last month.

But an EU aid package worth 50 billion euros ($55 billion) has been stuck in Brussels following a veto by Hungary, while the US Congress remains divided on sending additional aid to Ukraine.

Following his trip to Chukotka, Putin is expected to visit several regions in the Russian Far East to boost his re-election campaign amid the war with Ukraine, which has seen more than 300,000 Russians killed or maimed.

He is due to stand in March, seeking another six years in the Kremlin.

The only Kremlin leader ever to travel to Chukotka previously was Dmitry Medvedev in 2008.

Putin's trip sees him escape a wave of ugly protests in western Russia over hundreds of thousands of people scraping by in freezing conditions due to breakdowns in communal heating supplies.

In Elektrostal, Moscow region, desperate residents say they have had no communal heating - which Russians routinely expect the state to supply usually through piped hot water - for the entire winter so far.

'We have been without heating since [9 October],' one resident said in a video circulating on Telegram.

'It is impossible to be in our homes… We are freezing! We are freezing! We are freezing!' they said. 

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