French President Emmanuel Macron, left, shakes hands with U.S President Donald Trump as First Lady Melania Trump looks on after the Bastille Day military parade on the Champs Elysees avenue in Paris Friday, July 14, 2017. (Christophe Archambault, Pool via AP)
President-Elect Trump has arrived in Paris ahead of the Notre-Dame official re-opening to meet with French President Macron and, possibly, Ukraine’s Zelensky, who is also in Paris meeting with Macron.
Trump’s plane landed at Paris Orly airport a little before 0600 GMT on Saturday, French media reported.
The two are expected to meet on the sidelines of Saturday’s visit. While no agenda for their talks has been announced, European leaders are concerned that Trump could withdraw U.S. military aid to Ukraine at a crucial juncture in its war to repel Russian invaders.
Macron is a strong supporter of the NATO alliance and Ukraine’s fight, while Trump feels European nations need to pay more for their common defense and that a negotiated settlement is needed to end the Ukraine war.
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Trump will join dozens of world leaders and foreign dignitaries for the ceremony reopening Notre-Dame Cathedral 5-1/2 years after it was ravaged by fire.
While Trump is due to be sworn in as U.S. president only on Jan. 20, he has already held discussions with a number of world leaders, and members of his team are trying to get up to speed on a burgeoning number of world crises, including Ukraine and the Middle East.
Trump’s national security adviser, Mike Waltz, and Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, met on Wednesday in Washington with Ukraine envoy Andriy Yermak, leading to speculation that a meeting between Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy might be in the offing in Paris.
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