President-elect Donald Trump kicked off his first foreign trip since his reelection with a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace.
Ahead of the meeting, Macron welcomed Trump, saying, “It’s a great honor for the French people to welcome you five years later.”
Macron thanked Trump for his “solidarity” and “immediate action” during his first presidency: “You were at the time the president, the first time, and I remember the solidarity and your immediate action. Welcome back again. Thank you. We are very happy to have you here.”
France’s President Emmanuel Macron welcomesPresident-elect Donald Trump before a meeting at The Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris, on Dec. 7, 2024.
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Trump in return celebrated the “great success” the United States and France had together on “defense and offense” during his first term and said they will talk about how the world is “going a little crazy right now.”
“Thank you very much. Very great honor. And we had a great relationship. As everyone knows, we accomplished a lot together,” he said. “And the people of France are spectacular. I guess it’s one of our largest groups in the United States, French people, and we respect them and we love them. Very talented people, extremely energetic people, as you know very well, yeah, and it’s an honor to be here.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined Macron and Trump at about 11:34 a.m. Eastern time. However, he did not offer remarks ahead of the meeting.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron, President-elect Donald Trump, and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky pose before a meeting at The Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on Dec. 7, 2024.
Sarah Meyssonnier/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Trump is in France to partake in the reopening ceremonies for Notre Dame more than five years after a fire severely damaged the cathedral. First lady Jill Biden is also among the representatives from around the world attending the ceremonies.
The meeting comes at a time when Macron’s government is undergoing a political crisis after his prime minister, Michel Barnier, resigned after facing a no-confidence vote. Macron, who became president in 2017, has vowed he will serve until the end of his term in 2027 despite facing calls from some to resign.
First Lady Jill Biden listens to President-elect Donald Trump during a ceremony to mark the re-opening of the landmark Notre-Dame Cathedral in central Paris, on Dec. 7, 2024.
Thibault Camus, Pool via AFP via Getty Images
“We had a good time together, and we had a lot of lot of success, really great success, working together on defense and offense too,” Trump said of the U.S.-French relationship in his first administration. “And it certainly seems like the world is going a little crazy right now, and we’ll be talking about that.”
Trump arrived at the Elysee Palace around 10:41 a.m. and met with Macron outside before walking into the building around 10:43 a.m. Eastern time. He was also set to meet with Prince William, the Prince of Wales, for the first time since 2019, but their meeting before the Notre Dame ceremony was canceled. They ultimately met late Saturday night local time at the U.K. residence in Paris after the Notre Dame ceremony concluded, with Trump pointing to William and saying, “He’s doing a fantastic job,” before they walked into a meeting room.
Britain’s Prince William, Prince of Wales, and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump attend a meeting at the British Embassy as part of ceremonies to mark the reopening of the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, five-and-a-half years after a fire ravaged the Gothic masterpiece, on Dec. 7, 2024, in Paris.
Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters
