11:25 – What is Emmanuel Macron’s program in Washington this Wednesday?
First busy day for Emmanuel Macron on a state visit – for the second time – to Washington. In the morning, the President of the French Republic is to meet with Vice-President Kamala Harris, in particular on space issues and questions, for the occasion American figures could be present as well as French astronauts Thomas Pesquet and Sophie Adenot , the latest recruit from the European Space Agency. The afternoon will begin with the official start of the state visit, including a ceremony at Arlington Military Cemetery where many fighters from the various American wars rest. Emmanuel Macron will then be expected at the French Embassy in the United States before ending the day at a dinner with his wife, Brigitte Macronand the presidential couple Biden.
10:58 – A stopover in New Orleans in Emmanuel Macron’s agenda
End of the trip scheduled for Friday, December 2 for the French head of state after a stopover in Louisiana. After his stay in the capital, Emmanuel Macron will go to New Orleans: in the company of director Claude Lelouch and dancer Benjamin Millepied, for a last visit dedicated to the Francophonie.
10:30 – Negotiations in the Oval Office
The big piece of Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the United States will be played on Thursday, December 1. It is there that, after a ceremony with great pomp involving the singing of hymns and the firing of twenty-one cannon shots, the two heads of state will retire between the walls of the Oval Office to discuss serious matters. and which annoys some people. Among the hot topics that need to be addressed are the management of the war in Ukraine, while Washington and Paris have placed themselves as great allies of kyiv, and especially the negotiations on the subject of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), this law which must put in place a massive and protectionist trade aid plan for American consumers and businesses and which raises fears of discrimination and difficulties for European industries.
10:10 – Macron and Biden throw the submarine diplomatic crisis into oblivion
The friendship displayed between Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden should also make us forget the political crisis that angered Paris in September 2021. The United States, then strong in a tripartite alliance with the United Kingdom and Australia, had delighted with the lucrative contract for the manufacture and delivery of submarines to Australia, taking the place from France, which had positioned itself. More than a year after the geopolitical incident, the two presidents have more interest in presenting themselves as allies, while taking advantage of their cooperation.
09:57 – A visit to renew and strengthen Franco-American ties
The state visit began on a light tone with a meal between presidential couples, one of the goals of which was undoubtedly to show the good understanding of the two heads of state. Cooperation between Paris and Washington is at the heart of Emmanuel Macron’s trip across the Atlantic and this Wednesday it must be organized in several areas: nuclear, space and biodiversity. These are all topics that are in the economic news and on which the two States wish to hold a place of choice, a project which will be facilitated by teamwork, the conditions and certainly the mutual investments of which must be specified.
09:49 – Who accompanies Emmanuel Macron to the United States?
The French president is in the United States with a large delegation, to advance many strategic files. Several ministers are there: Bruno Le Maire (Ministers for the Economy), Sébastien Lecornu (Minister for the Armed Forces), Catherine Colonna (Minister for Foreign Affairs), Sylvie Retailleau (Minister for Higher Education); leading economic players were also invited, in particular Xavier Niel, boss of Illiad, Bernard Arnault, boss of LVMH, Patrick Pouyanné, manager of TotalEnergies.
09:41 – A dinner between presidential couples last night
The first evening of Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte was quite relaxed: Joe and Jill Biden welcomed them at Washington airport. They dined in an Italian restaurant in the federal capital. The Elysee Palace described this first head to head meeting as a “presidential moment of intimacy”, organized “in the very informal, very frank and very friendly framework of the relationship they have”.
09:32 – Joe Biden rolls out the red carpet for France
The French President knows that Joe Biden and the White House consider it important to pamper his closest partner on the European continent and the signal sent is necessarily flattering for the Head of State, who has imposed these Last 5 years as Europe’s most influential political leader. His initiatives on the issue of the war in Ukraine, on the recomposition of multilateralism or on the ecological transition are closely studied in Washington. In fact, Emmanuel Macron has become the best European interlocutor for Joe Biden to consolidate the liberal-Western alliance at the start of the century marked by the rise of autocratic regimes.