Nathan News

WASHINGTON — The White House announced Monday that it will host French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, in December during the first state visit of President Biden’s administration.

The visit, scheduled for December 1, comes as the two leaders have sought to strengthen cooperation between the United States and Europe amid several global crises, particularly Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ripple effects it has had on world markets.

“We are working closely with France on the full range of global challenges, as you all know, including the war in Ukraine,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Monday. “It is for these reasons that the President and First Lady felt it was important to welcome this close and valued partner to the White House for their first state visit.”

“It will underscore the deep and enduring relationship between the United States and France, our oldest ally,” she said.

The visit symbolizes something of a return to traditional diplomatic activities for Mr. Biden, particularly after the White House regularly postponed travel and reduced meetings with foreign leaders for many of the first months of his presidency due to the pandemic.

“Covid has certainly delayed many in-person events that a president traditionally hosts at the White House,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said.

But the White House announcement said the visit, which will include a state dinner, will feature the usual pomp and pageantry of traditional state visits, through which the White House celebrates ties with its closest allies.

For Mr. Macron, it is perhaps a more familiar affair.

In 2018, Mr. Macron was also the first world leader to be invited to a state dinner by President Donald J. Trump, attending a ceremony that included a performance by the Washington National Opera and wine produced thanks to to an American and French wine collaboration. Mr Macron won a second term as President of France in April and will return for his second state visit surrounded by a new administration.

The visit also marks a resumption of relations between Paris and Washington after a low point last year, when it was revealed that the United States had secretly pursued plans to help Australia build nuclear submarines, thus undermining a 50-year, $66 billion contract that France had cut to supply the Australian government with its own conventional submarines.

Mr Macron and other senior French officials were exasperated by the secret negotiations, going so far as to briefly recall the French ambassadors to the United States and Australia. Mr Biden then sought to mend relations, meeting Mr Macron one-on-one and calling the US handling of the negotiations “clumsy”.

In recent weeks, however, Mr. Biden and Mr. Macron have spoken of the need to coordinate their activities in response to threats to Western democracies.

At the United Nations General Assembly last week, the two men condemned Russian President Vladimir V. Putin for disrupting the international order with his war, which has reverberated beyond Ukraine by making skyrocketing energy prices in Europe before winter.

Since the start of the war, Mr. Macron has repeatedly sought to negotiate with Mr. Putin to mediate the dispute, while Mr. Biden has consistently urged US lawmakers to continue approving regular military aid packages for Ukraine in order to tip the scales. of the war.

State visits traditionally provide an opportunity for cabinet secretaries and senior lawmakers to mingle with their counterparts, and the visit should also provide an opportunity to discuss climate and trade policy.