Macron, Trump, Zelensky meet in Paris
President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday hosted a three-way talk with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and US President-elect Donald Trump in Paris, an AFP correspondent has reported.
Trump held talks with Macron inside the Elysee Palace ahead of the re-opening ceremony for Notre Dame Cathedral, with Zelensky then arriving and immediately joining them.
The trio posed for a picture but made no further public comment before starting the talks.
The three leaders are in Paris for the reopening of France’s iconic Notre Dame Cathedral on Saturday for the first time since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the 861-year-old landmark in 2019.
The restoration, a spectacular achievement in just five years for a structure that took nearly two centuries to build, is seen as a moment of triumph for French President Emmanuel Macron, who championed the ambitious timeline – and a welcome respite from his domestic political woes.
READ ALSO: World leaders, Psalms, prayers, hymns hallmark reopening of stunning Notre Dame Cathedral
Held up as an example of French creativity and resilience by President Emmanuel Macron, Notre Dame’s renaissance so soon after a 2019 blaze that destroyed its roof and spire comes at a difficult time for the country.
The re-opening will officially take place when archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich opens the doors to the cathedral at 1800 GMT, by knocking three times, to herald the start of the almost two-hour ceremony.
Macron has scored a major coup by attracting US president-elect Donald Trump, on his first foreign trip since his election, for the ceremony along with some 40 other leaders, including Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and the UK’s heir to the throne, Prince William.
It is “a cathedral like we have never seen before,” Philippe Jost, the head of the restoration project, told Franceinfo radio, saying he was proud to “show the whole world” a “great collective success and a source of pride for all of France”.