Old Friends Emmanuel Macron is entitled to the rare honor of a second state visit to Washington
After the hitch on the Australian submarines, Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden whisper sweet nothings in their ears. — Susan Walsh/AP/SIPA
- Emmanuel Macron will be in the United States all week for a “state visit”, the highest level of protocol expected for a foreign leader.
- If diplomatic relations between France and the United States are very old, Brexit and the role of Paris in Europe partly explain why Americans are so keen to maintain good relations with the French, according to historian Nicole Bacharan and international relations specialist Karim Emile Bitar.
< li>But not all of Washington’s allies have the right to such consideration…
Arriving at; Washington Monday evening, Emmanuel Macron will perpetuate what could be called a tradition of international relations. Like all the presidents of the Fifth Republic before him, With the notable exception of Nicolas Sarkozy, the French head of state will be received on a “state visit” in the USA. Better still, it will be the second for him, after that of 2018, an honor that only Xi Jinping has received in the past fifteen years. In eight years, France is therefore preparing to cumulate three of the six state visits organized by the White House.
“This is not a simple meeting, but the pinnacle of the diplomatic ritual in the American republic  ;”, explains the historian Nicole Bacharan to; 20 Minutes. If the agenda remains unclear (see box), a welcome to the sound of cannon at the White House is planned, as well “a grand dinner, with many guests chosen especially for their interests with France” says the specialist from the United States. “It’s a way for Joe Biden to honor France,” she adds.
From Louisiana to Lebanon, a bromance and common interests
If Emmanuel Macron has the right to these honors, it’s first because France is an ally; particularly pampered across the Atlantic. The privileged relationship began from the War of Independence, with the personal commitment of the Marquis de Lafayette, then with the sale of Louisiana by Napoleon in 1803. These ties were then “reinforced with the two world wars” and then cooperation within NATO. At the peak of this agreement, “there was a moment of solidarity. after September 11, Jacques Chirac immediately went to Washington”, says the historian. And even though this bromance almost crashed on the war in Iraq, “we got back together. the pieces”.
But how did France become a special partner in the eyes of the Americans? Despite a relationship there so narrow and historic, “the choice of Brexit and a unilateral policy hasn’t been well seen by the Democrats”, deciphers for 20 MinutesKarim Emile Bitar, research director at; the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (Iris) and specialist in the foreign policy of the United States. “France and the United States have common interests in the Gulf,” he also said, citing the Lebanese file on which “the United States We are pressing France to avert an even deeper crisis.” According to him, there are “ideological affinities, a will to to share the roles and a certain complementarity;” between the two countries.
Golds of the Republic, champions of democracy
The United States “has the same messianic vocation to uphold the values of democracy” than France, abounds Nicole Bacharan. It’s moreover the form of the American and French democracies themselves which explain why Emmanuel Macron has the right to the rare honor of a “state visit”. “From a protocol point of view, France has a President of the Republic who is Head of State and Head of Government de facto”, notes the historian. “To have the full deployment of Republican protocol in all its glory, you need a head of state who governs, a presidential or semi-presidential regime,” that not all countries have. Thus, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison only had the right to an “official visit” in September 2019. Likewise, Olaf Scholz and Rishi Sunak are not heads of state. But beneath the gilding and pageantry, this visit is also “a real working meeting” between allies.
In the context of the war in Ukraine, “it’s important to consolidate this relationship with others. the time when Russia is looking for allies in Europe,” points out Karim Emile Bitar. Since Brexit, France has thus played a key role. within the European Union to maintain a position as aligned as possible with the United States. “Even Obama has returned to campaign against Brexit” after having delegated Europe to a secretary of state to focus on Asia, “because the Americans have no other reliable allies outside of China and South Korea, in another context,” says Nicole Bacharan.
Mending the Australian affront
The Paris-Washington relationship is such a fixed point that Emmanuel Macron has been left behind. one of only two leaders officially received by Donald Trump. The opportunity to plant a tree, a symbol of friendship, in the garden of the White House. This had not prevented the Republican to leave the Paris agreement on the climate, nor the agreement on the Iranian nuclear. With Joe Biden, “there is a marked improvement” and a “renew of multilateralism”, underlines Karim Emile Bitar, who insists on the role of Anthony Blinken “Francophile and Francophone”.
The story got off to a bad start, however, with the Australian submarine crisis. “The French have been Ulcerated by the betrayal and rudeness of the Americans, who negotiated behind their backs at the G20. The state visit had to to be in the pipes from that moment, to appease the offense,” said Nicole Bacharan, calling Joe Biden “an old hand in diplomacy”. “Symbolically, by rolling out the red carpet, it’s a way to turn the page for good” of this incident, adds Karim Emile Bitar. And to prolong the bromance between the two champions of democracy.
Exchanges with China but also the war in Ukraine will of course be on the program of this state visit. But Emmanuel Macron also intends, according to the Elysée, “to obtain from Joe Biden exemptions for European industrialists penalized by American legislation”. Finally, in addition to a private dinner to be held Wednesday at the White House with Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, a lunch is scheduled for Thursday with the head of diplomacy Antony Blinken, followed by a state dinner. A press conference is also scheduled for Thursday. At the end of his visit, Emmanuel Macron will travel to New Orleans in Louisiana.