France's Macron Makes a State Visit to the UK With Migration and Ukraine on the Agenda
Macron and Prime Minister Keir Starmer also tried to advance plans for a post-ceasefire security force for Ukraine despite apparent US indifference to the idea and Russia's refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbor. Macron's three-day visit at the invitation of King Charles III was the first state visit to the UK by a European Union head of state since Brexit and a symbol of the British government's desire to reset relations with the bloc that the UK acrimoniously left in 2020. The president and his wife, Brigitte Macron, were driven to Windsor Castle by horse-drawn carriage, greeted by a military honor guard, and treated to a state banquet hosted by the king and Queen Camilla. The British royals made a state visit to France in September 2023.
Macron also addressed both houses of Britain's Parliament in the building's fabulously ornate Royal Gallery before sitting down for talks with Starmer on migration, defense, and investment. At a UK–France summit, senior government officials from the two countries discussed small-boat crossings–a thorny issue for successive governments on both sides of the channel. Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than Mediterranean European countries, but thousands of migrants each year use northern France as a launching point to reach the UK, either by stowing away in trucks or–after a clampdown on that route–in small boats across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. The UK has struck a series of deals with France over the years to increase patrols of beaches and share intelligence in an attempt to disrupt the smuggling gangs. It has all had only a limited impact. About 37,000 people were detected crossing the English Channel in small boats in 2024, the second-highest annual figure after 46,000 in 2022. More than 20,000 people made the crossing in the first six months of 2025, up by about 50 percent from the same period last year. Dozens of people have died attempting the crossing.
Starmer, whose center-left government was elected a year ago, has pledged to 'smash the gangs' behind organized people-smuggling. His plan rests on closer cooperation with France and with countries further up the migrants' route from Africa and the Middle East. The UK also aims to strike deals with individual nations to take back failed asylum seekers. British officials have been pushing for French police to intervene more forcefully to stop the boats and welcomed the sight of officers slashing rubber dinghies with knives in recent days. UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the French are 'bringing in important new tactics to stop boats that are in the water.' Britain also is pushing France to let officers intervene against boats in deeper waters, a change the government in Paris is considering. Campaigners for migrants' rights and a police union warn that doing so could endanger both migrants and officers. Starmer's spokesperson, Tom Wells, said some of the tactics being discussed are 'operationally and legally complex,' but 'we're working closely with the French.'
The two leaders have worked closely together to rally support for Ukraine, though they have taken contrasting approaches to US President Donald Trump, with Macron more willing to challenge the American president than the emollient Starmer. Britain and France have led efforts to form an international peacekeeping force for Ukraine to reinforce a future ceasefire with European troops and equipment and US security guarantees. Trump has shown little enthusiasm for the idea, however, and a ceasefire remains elusive. British officials say the 'coalition of the willing' idea is 'alive and well,' with Macron and Starmer due to join an international videoconference to discuss planning for the force. Starmer spoke with President Zelenskyy on Monday about the 'significant progress being made by military planners,' the British leader's office said.
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Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
Macron says France and Britain will ‘save Europe' as he starts a state visit to the UK
LONDON: French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday urged Britain to stick close to its neighbors despite its exit from the European Union, saying France and the UK will 'save Europe' by standing for democracy, law and international order in a dangerous world. On a state visit that mixed royal pageantry with tough political talks on Ukraine and migration, Macron said Europe must strengthen its economy and defenses and reduce its dependence 'on both the US and China.' Macron's three-day trip, at the invitation of King Charles III, is the first state visit to the UK by a European Union head of state since Brexit, and a symbol of the UK government's desire to reset relations with the bloc after Britain acrimoniously left the EU in 2020. Macron addressed members of both houses of Britain's Parliament packed into the building's ornate Royal Gallery. He said the two countries represent 'a world order based on law, justice and respect for territorial integrity, an order that is today being attacked on a daily basis.' 'The United Kingdom and France must once again show the world that our alliance can make all the difference,' Macron said, adding that 'we will save Europe by our example and our solidarity.' He said that even though Britain has left the EU, 'the United Kingdom cannot stay on the sidelines. Because defense and security, competitiveness, democracy — the very core of our identity — are connected across Europe as a continent.' Pomp and politics The French president and his wife, Brigitte Macron, were treated to the full force of British ceremonial charm, a far cry from the chilly relations of 2022, when then-Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said that the 'jury is out' on whether Macron was a friend or a foe. The Macrons were greeted at London's RAF Northolt air base by Prince William and his wife Catherine — wearing a dress by French design house Christian Dior — before being met by King Charles and Queen Camilla in Windsor, west of London. They were driven to the almost 1,000-year-old royal residence of Windsor Castle in horse-drawn carriages, through streets bedecked in Union Jacks and French tricolor flags. The king and queen hosted a banquet for the Macrons at Windsor Castle on Tuesday evening, with 160 guests including politicians, diplomats and celebrities such as Mick Jagger and Elton John. They were served summer vegetables, chicken with asparagus and iced blackcurrant parfait, along with Champagne and a gin-infused cocktail called L'entente, after the 'entente cordiale' struck between Britain and France in 1904. As monarch, Charles is expected to be above politics, but he spoke about the support Britain and France give Ukraine 'in defense of our shared values,' noted the challenge of 'irregular migration across the English Channel' and said the two countries face 'complex threats, emanating from multiple directions. 'As friends and as allies, we face them together,' Charles said. New tactics to stop boats Politics will take center stage on Wednesday, when Macron sits down for talks with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on migration, defense and investment — including a 12.5 percent stake by French energy firm EDF in a new nuclear power plant planned for eastern England. Macron also came bearing a tantalizing cultural gift: an agreement to send the Bayeux Tapestry to Britain for the first time in more than 900 years. The 70-meter (230-foot) tapestry showing the Norman conquest of England in 1066 will go on display at the British Museum from September 2026 to July 2027. At talks Wednesday and a UK-France summit on Thursday, Macron and Starmer will discuss ways to stop migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats and try to advance plans for a post-ceasefire security force for Ukraine, despite apparent US indifference to the idea and Russia's refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbor. Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than Mediterranean European countries, but thousands of migrants each year use northern France as a launching point to reach the UK, either by stowing away in trucks or — after a clampdown on that route — in small boats across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. The UK has struck a series of deals with France over the years to increase patrols of beaches and share intelligence in an attempt to disrupt the smuggling gangs. It has all had only a limited impact. About 37,000 people were detected crossing the English Channel in small boats in 2024, and more than 20,000 people made the crossing in the first six months of 2025, up by about 50 percent from the same period last year. Dozens of people have died trying to cross. British officials have been pushing for French police to intervene more forcefully to stop the boats, and welcomed the sight of officers slashing rubber dinghies with knives in recent days. France is also considering a UK proposal for a 'one-in, one-out' deal that would see France take back some migrants who reached Britain, in return for the UK accepting some of those in France. Macron said the leaders would try 'to fix today what is a burden for our two countries.' 'France and the UK have a shared responsibility to address irregular migration with humanity, solidarity and fairness,' he said. Keeping Ukraine in focus Starmer and Macron have worked closely together to rally support for Ukraine, though they have taken contrasting approaches to US President Donald Trump, with Macron more willing to challenge the American president than the emollient Starmer. Britain and France have led efforts to form an international peacekeeping force for Ukraine to reinforce a future ceasefire with European troops and equipment and US security guarantees. Trump has shown little enthusiasm for the idea, however, and a ceasefire remains elusive. British officials say the 'coalition of the willing' idea is alive and well, with Macron and Starmer due to join an international videoconference on Thursday to discuss planning for the force. Macron said the coalition was a sign that 'Europeans will never abandon Ukraine – never.'
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3 hours ago
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French Intelligence Chief: No Certainty on Whereabouts of Iran's Uranium Stocks
France's intelligence chief said on Tuesday that all aspects of Iran's nuclear program have been pushed back several months after American and Israeli air strikes, but there is uncertainty over where its highly-enriched uranium stocks are. "The Iranian nuclear program is the material, it is highly-enriched uranium, it is a capacity to convert this uranium from the gaseous phase to the solid phase. It is the manufacturing of the core and it is the delivery," Nicolas Lerner, who heads the DGSE intelligence service, told LCI television. "Our assessment today is that each of these stages has been very seriously affected, very seriously damaged and that the nuclear program, as we knew it, has been extremely delayed, probably many months." Lerner, who was speaking for the first time on national television, said a small part of Iran's highly-enriched uranium stockpile had been destroyed, but the rest remained in the hands of the authorities. "Today we have indications (on where it is), but we cannot say with certainty as long as the IAEA does not restart its work. It's very important. We won't have the capacity to trace it (the stocks)," Lerner said. Other intelligence assessments have also suggested that Iran retains a hidden stockpile of enriched uranium and the technical capacity to rebuild. Lerner echoed those comments saying there was a possibility Iran could press ahead with a clandestine program with smaller enrichment capacities. "That's why France is so attached to finding a diplomatic solution to this nuclear crisis," he said.
Al Arabiya
6 hours ago
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French intel chief: No certainty on whereabouts of Iran's uranium stocks
The head of France's foreign intelligence service said on Tuesday that some of Iran's highly enriched uranium stocks were destroyed by American and Israeli strikes, but there was no certainty on where the rest was now located. Speaking in an interview on LCI television, Nicolas Lerner, who heads the DGSE, said all aspects of Iran's nuclear program had been put back by several months following the air strikes, but while Paris had indications where Iran's highly enriched uranium stocks were there would be no certainty until the United Nations atomic watchdog returned to the country.
