A significant influx of media here at the Élysée Palace this Friday for a very important meeting between two important allies. French President Emmanuel Macron receives British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak here in Paris this Friday, at the first Franco-British summit in five years.
It will be a meeting focused on the close up between the two countries, according to the Elysee Palace, in what unites them.
War in Ukraine, energy and the sensitive issue of immigration
The seven ministers from each party will speak on a wide range of topics, including, of course, the war in Ukraine.
The defense It will be one of the main themes of the day, but also energy. And special attention will be paid to nuclear energy cooperation going forward.
But the chemistry between these two leaders will be put to the test because the British government also comes here to talk about a thorny issue, a difficult issue to resolve, that of migration.
Rishi Sunak has just announced his pretty tough and controversial immigration policy this week, you’ll want something from Emmanuel Macron. France has been repeatedly asked by the British government to do more on migration.
An agreement with the EU, not with France
France has repeatedly said that it wants a deal with the UK, but between the UK and the EU and that no deal possible between UK and France since Brexit.
So it’s going to be very interesting to see how this difficult issue puts this “bromance” to the test. It’s going to be interesting to see how they approach that topic. But obviously it is also a very important issue for both countries and one that they will have to talk about and work together in the future.
So far this year** some 3,000 people have reached UK shores via the English Channel**. But according to the two governments, the work carried out jointly has prevented a similar number from making the trip.