Macron to Visit UK as Starmer Eyes ‘Reset’ with EU
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - French President Emmanuel Macron is to begin a state visit to the UK on Tuesday, where he is set to address the British Parliament and co-chair a meeting on Ukraine as London seeks to strengthen its ties with Europe after Brexit.
King Charles III has invited the French leader and his wife, Brigitte, on a three-day official visit during which Macron is to hold joint discussions with Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the 37th Franco-British Summit on Thursday, AFP reported.
Talks will focus on aid to Ukraine, joint efforts to halt illegal migration crossing the Channel, and strengthening defense cooperation between the two countries.
“This is the first state visit to the United Kingdom by a European Union head of state since Brexit,” the Elysee Palace said on Friday, referring to the UK’s 2016 vote to leave the bloc.
“And, especially, the first since Prime Minister Starmer signaled what he called a ‘reset’ of relations between the United Kingdom and Europe,” it added.
There were simmering political tensions between Paris and London in the immediate aftermath of Brexit under the previous right-wing Conservative British government.
But there has been a new warmth in relations under the center-left Labor government led by Starmer, and the two countries now lead European efforts to find peace for Ukraine.
During the visit, Macron and Starmer will host the 37th Franco-British Summit in London on Thursday, where they are set to discuss opportunities to strengthen defense ties between the two countries in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The agreements will be “adapted to this profoundly changed strategic reality,” the Elysee Palace said, without offering further details.
The last state visit by a French president to the UK was made by Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.
