Macron urges new era of Anglo-French unity in address to UK parliament

WINDSOR: President Emmanuel Macron argued Tuesday that France and Britain must work together to defend the post-World War II “international order,” as he addressed parliament on the first day of his UK state visit.

The first such visit by an EU head of state since Brexit, Macron said in a wide-ranging speech that the two countries must renew their century-old alliance to face down an array of threats.

“As permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, deeply committed to multilateralism, the United Kingdom and France must once again show the world that our alliance can make all the difference,” he told British lawmakers, speaking in English.

“Clearly, we have to work together... to protect the international order as we fought (for) it after the Second World War,” Macron added.

Touching on various thorny issues, from global conflicts to irregular cross-Channel migration, he insisted European countries will “never abandon Ukraine” in its war with Russia while demanding an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza.

Hours earlier, the French president and his wife Brigitte had received a warm, pomp-filled welcome from King Charles III and Queen Camilla in Windsor as the three-day visit got underway.

They had been greeted off the presidential plane at an air base northwest of London by heir-to-the-throne Prince William and his wife Catherine, Princess of Wales.

After a 41-gun salute sounded from Windsor’s Home Park and a royal carriage procession through the town, which was decked out in French Tricolores and British Union flags, the group entered its castle for lunch.

First visit since 2008

The first state visit by an EU head of state since the UK’s acrimonious 2020 departure from the European Union, it is also the first by a French president since Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.

Touching on Brexit in his speech in parliament, which follows in the footsteps of predecessors Charles de Gaulle and Francois Mitterrand, Macron said it was “deeply regrettable” but the result of its 2016 referendum was respected.

Macron will hold several meetings with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer starting Wednesday.

After taking power in 2024, the British leader has been making good on his pledge to reset relations with European capitals following years of Brexit-fueled tensions.

Their discussions are expected to focus on aid to war-torn Ukraine and bolstering defense spending, as well as joint efforts to stop migrants from crossing the Channel in small boats — a potent political issue in Britain.

Starmer is under intense pressure to curb the cross-Channel arrivals, as Euroskeptic Nigel Farage’s hard-right Reform UK party uses the issue to fuel its rise.

London has for years pressed Paris to do more to halt the boats leaving from northern French beaches, welcoming footage last Friday showing French police stopping one such boat from departing.

In his parliamentary address Macron called it “a burden for our two countries,” stressing the need for better “cooperation” to “fix” it.

Later Tuesday, Britain’s Francophile king, who is believed to enjoy a warm rapport with Macron, will host a lavish banquet in his honor in the vast medieval St. George’s Hall.

Charles is set to laud the vital partnership between France and the UK amid a “multitude of complex threats.”

“As friends and as allies, we face them together,” he will say, according to Buckingham Palace.

Trade and business ties

The visit also aims to boost trade and business ties, with Paris and London announcing Tuesday that French energy giant EDF will have a 12.5-stake in new British nuclear power plant Sizewell C.

There is also a cultural dimension, with another announcement that France will loan the 11th century Bayeux Tapestry to the British Museum for 10 months from September 2026.

The loan of the embroidery depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England will be made in exchange for ancient “treasures” mainly from the Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo site, one of England’s most important archaeological sites.

Wednesday will see Macron have lunch with Starmer ahead of the two leaders on Thursday co-hosting the 37th Franco-British Summit, where they are set to discuss opportunities to strengthen defense ties.

Britain and France are spearheading talks among a 30-nation coalition on how to support a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, including potentially deploying peacekeeping forces.

The two leaders will dial in to a meeting of the coalition on Thursday “to discuss stepping up support for Ukraine and further increasing pressure on Russia,” Starmer’s office confirmed on Monday.

They will speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to the French presidency.

A speeding car fleeing police slammed into a crowded bar early Saturday, killing four people and injuring 11 in a historic district of Tampa, Florida, that is known for its nightlife and tourists.

An air patrol unit spotted the silver sedan driving recklessly on a freeway at about 12:40 a.m. after it was seen street racing in another neighborhood, the Tampa Police Department said in a statement.

The Florida Highway Patrol caught up with the vehicle and tried to perform a PIT maneuver, which involves bumping the rear fender to cause a spinout, but it was unsuccessful.

Highway patrol officers “disengaged” as the vehicle sped toward historic Ybor City near downtown, police said, and ultimately the driver lost control and hit more than a dozen people outside the bar, Bradley’s on 7th.

Three people died at the scene, and a fourth died at a hospital. As of Saturday afternoon, two people were hospitalized in critical condition, seven were listed as stable and two had been treated and discharged, police said. Additionally there were two people who had only minor injuries and declined treatment at the scene.

“What happened this morning was a senseless tragedy, our hearts are with the loved ones of the victims and all those who were impacted,” Police Chief Lee Bercaw said in a statement.

Officers identified the suspect as 22-year-old Silas Sampson, who was booked Saturday and was being held at the Hillsborough County Jail.

Court documents show Sampson was charged with four counts of vehicular homicide and four counts of aggravated fleeing or eluding with serious bodily injury or death, all first-degree felonies.

No attorney was immediately listed for Sampson who could speak on his behalf.

“Our entire city feels this loss,” Mayor Jane Castor, who also served as Tampa’s first female police chief, said on social media. She added that the investigation is ongoing.

In recent years some states and local agencies have pushed to restrict high-speed car chases to protect both civilians and officers. Following a rise in fatalities, a 2023 study funded by the US Department of Justice called for chases to be rare, saying the dangers often outweigh the immediate need to take someone into custody.

Nevertheless, Florida’s highway patrol has loosened limits on car chases and PIT maneuvers, tactics that the Justice Department-backed report characterized as “high-risk” and “controversial.”

Macron urges new era of Anglo-French unity in address to UK parliament