DONALD Trump will meet Prince William ahead of the reopening ceremony for Notre Dame for talks on the ‘special relationship’.
The incoming US leader will join the Prince of Wales and French President Emmanuel Macron to mark the return of the 800-year-old symbol of France.
Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump join hands at the White House in 2018[/caption]
The roof of the iconic cathedral was gutted in the 2019 blaze[/caption]
Prince William welcoming the Emir of Qatar during a state visit this week[/caption]
The iconic cathedral has been restored after a devastating fire in 2019 tore through the roof and destroyed much of the site’s heritage.
William is expected to discuss the importance of the US-UK’s ‘special relationship’ with Trump, Kensington Palace has announced.
The 42-year-old will also meet with outgoing First Lady Jill Biden, as will Trump.
The trip to Paris marks William’s first visit since 2017 and will be his first meeting with Trump since 2019.
The president-elect, making his first foreign trip since his election win, arrived at Orly airport in the south of Paris aboard a private plane just before 7am, a source told AFP.
William’s discussion about the US-UK alliance comes as Trump has touted a more isolationist foreign policy and pledged to slap tariffs on trade.
Trump is also set to hold talks with Macron before the ceremony and may also meet Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky.
With dozens of guests present, Notre Dame’s reopening will include the ritualised opening of the cathedral’s massive doors, the reawakening of its organ and the celebration of the first Mass.
Macron toured the fully restored church last week as cameras were allowed in for the first time after the rebuilding project.
The extensive restoration took more than 60 months and cost a whopping £600million.
Work has included the total reconstruction of the collapsed fan-vaulted roof and spire, while builders unearthed previously unseen treasures from the smoking ruin.
Some 1200 oaks from across France were needed to completely rebuild the framework of the nave and the choir.
The ceremony comes at a critical time for Macron whose government is facing a crisis.
Earlier this week the 46-year-old announced he would not resign after his prime minister Michel Barnier lost a no-confidence vote in France’s parliament.
The inside of the cathedral following its restoration[/caption]
Dozens of people will be at today’s reopening ceremony[/caption]
Trump’s movements will be highly watched – particularly if he were to meet with Zelensky.
He has pledged to get peace in Ukraine on “day one” with aides making clear Ukraine may need to cede land for peace, which Ukraine has rejected.
On April 15 2019, millions around the world looked on in horror as flames tore through Notre Dame.
Dramatic pictures showed the blaze rip through the much of the building and destroy the church’s spire and much of its Gothic roof.
Ancient artefacts were burned, along with most of the wood and metal roof, along with the landmark spire.
Fire chiefs said the two towers and the main structure of the cathedral had been saved by 400 heroic firefighters after they battled long into the night.
The exact cause of the blaze was never established, but investigators believed it to be accidental, started by either a cigarette or a short circuit in the electrical system.
Our Lady of Paris: A history of Notre Dame
NOTRE Dame was one of the world’s most iconic buildings before the fire.
- One of the city’s oldest and most recognisable buildings, work began on Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral in 1163.
- The original structure was completed nearly 200 years later, in 1345, and its name literally translates to “Our Lady of Paris”.
- Some 13 million people now visit the Catholic landmark every year – more than 30,000 every day on average.
- It is believed to be the most visited structure in the French capital.
- The first stone of the original structure was laid in front of Pope Alexander III after the Bishop of Paris, Maurice de Sully, proposed the cathedral after his election in 1160.
- It grew iconic in popular culture through several artistic works, including the Victor Hugo novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame, which was published in 1831 and adapted by Disney in 1996.
- The spire, which collapsed during the devastating fire, has undergone several changes in the building’s history.
- The 13th century spire was dismantled during the French Revolution and later rebuilt in the 1860s.
- The cathedral’s stained glass rose windows – at least one of which has been destroyed by the blaze – are also some of its most architecturally significant features.
- A brass plate set in stone outside the building also marks “Point Zero” in Paris, the centre of the city.
- It is the point in France from where all distances to Paris are measured.
- A message engraved around the stone reads: “Point zero des routes de France”.
President-elect Trump took to the stage this week during an awards ceremony[/caption]
