8 h. ago Macron and Starmer talk Trump, boats and Ukraine – but Brexit is the ghost at the banquet | Rafael Behr

The prime minister has repaired broken relations with France, but Britain still looks perilously isolated in a world of shifting alliancesGilded carriages and royal banquets are not essential tools of modern diplomacy, but nor are they obsolete. In a digital age, when intergovernmental business could easily be conducted online, the analogue grandeur of a state visit feels potent as a bestowal of favour.This week Emmanuel Macron is the beneficiary. In September it will be Donald Trump. The sequence is not meant to indicate preference. Both relationships are special, say officials. There are enough champagne receptions and sleepovers at Windsor Castle to go around.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnistOne year of Labour, with Pippa Crerar, Rafael Behr and more On 9 July, join Pippa Crerar, Raf Behr, Frances O’Grady and Salma Shah as they look back at one year of the Labour government, its current policies and plans for the next four years Continue reading...

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13 h. ago Starmer and Macron to meet at No 10 amid push for French help on small boats

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived on Tuesday for the first state visit by an EU head of state since Brexit.

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18 h. ago Macron makes Brexit joke in address to Parliament during UK state visit

Emmanuel Macron joked the Bayeux Tapestry loan took longer to deliver than Brexit, after it was announced on Tuesday (8 July) that the 1000-year-old wall hanging will return to the UK.

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18 h. ago Britain and France must shoulder burden of keeping Europe safe, Macron says in historic parliament address

The French President is the first European leader to have a state visit to the UK and address a joint sitting of the Houses of Parliament since Brexit

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19 h. ago Macron urges Britain and France to move on from Brexit and work ‘side by side’

French president says two countries have ‘special responsibility’ for the security of Europe

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19 h. ago Emmanuel Macron promises ‘tangible results’ on illegal migration in state visit speech to UK Parliament

The French President addressed MPs and peers ahead of talks on the small boats crisis with Sir Keir Starmer

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20 h. ago Emmanuel Macron brands Brexit 'regrettable' but says UK and Europe united against threats

French President Emmanuel Macron was invited to give a speech to MPs and peers during his state visit, who gathered in the packed-out Royal Gallery in Parliament

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21 h. ago Macron state visit live: French president addresses parliament after royal welcome from King and Queen

Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron greeted by Prince and Princess of Wales at RAF Northolt

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21 h. ago Macron state visit live: French president set to address parliament after royal welcome from King and Queen

Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron greeted by Prince and Princess of Wales at RAF Northolt

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21 h. ago The Daily T: Macron arrives in London for Starmer’s Brexit surrender

The Daily T: Macron arrives in London for Starmer’s Brexit surrender  The Telegraph

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36 h. ago Donald Trump's state visit to the UK to be set for Parliament recess to stop him addressing MPs, senior diplomat says

The US President has been offered a historic second state visit in a charm offensive designed to smooth relations with Labour politicians who criticised him.

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57 h. ago Macron’s UK state visit underlines effort to move on from Brexit nightmare

Bitter rows had damaged trust and dialogue but UK-French relations have thawed amid new geopolitical landscapeWhen Emmanuel Macron rides in a horse-drawn carriage to Windsor Castle this week, it will be to celebrate the return of close political relations between London and Paris, drawing a line under the damaging spats of the Brexit years.The French president’s office said the “shared interests” of the two countries were what mattered now, hailing France and the UK’s “essential” close relationship on the international stage. This reinvigorated cross-Channel bond was “vital”, a UK official said. Continue reading...

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