Vice President Harris to Meet With Macron During Paris Visit

October 22, 2021 by Dan McCue
Vice President Harris to Meet With Macron During Paris Visit
Vice President Kamala Harris waves at the end of a virtual town hall, Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in November in the administration’s latest attempt to repair the diplomatic damage caused by a botched submarine agreement.

The White House announced Friday that Harris and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff will be in Paris Nov. 11 and 12, where the vice president is scheduled to deliver a speech at the fourth annual Paris Peace Forum and also participate in the Paris Conference on Libya.

While in the city, the White House said, Harris and President Macron will meet to “discuss the importance of the transatlantic relationship to global peace and security and underscore the importance of our partnership on global challenges from COVID-19 and the climate crisis to issues affecting the Sahel and the Indo-Pacific.”

But it is sure to be the frayed American-French alliance that is top of mind with the press and observers during the two-day visit.

In September, Macron was reportedly shocked to learn that Australia was bailing on a $66 billion submarine contract it signed with France in 2016, and opting to join the U.S. and the U.K. in a trilateral security partnership, AUKUS, which lists the development of nuclear submarines for Australia as priority No. 1. 

In France, the Australian contract was seen as a source of national pride, particularly after it beat out both Germany and Japan for the opportunity to replace an aging Aussie submarine fleet with 12 new diesel-electric vessels.

The problem with the AUKUS deal is that nobody bothered to tell Macron. Claiming he’d been blindsided, he immediately recalled France’s ambassadors to the U.S. and Australia.

In addition, Macron initially refused to take a call from Biden for days after the Indo-Pacific alliance was announced.

When the two leaders finally did talk, Biden reportedly apologized and said the U.S. should not have left France in the dark.

Since then, Macron’s anger has shown no signs of subsiding, and he has insisted the Biden administration demonstrate its contrition in deeds not just words.

Toward that end, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is visiting Paris this week, and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will arrive there later on Friday.

In addition to her other scheduled events, the vice president and second gentleman will mark  Veterans Day in the United States and Armistice Day in France by visiting the Suresnes American Cemetery, the resting place of 1,541 American soldiers killed in World War I.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue.

A+
a-
  • France
  • Joe Biden
  • Kamala Harris
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Foreign Affairs

    At Paris Gathering, Western Leaders to Show Unity for Ukraine and Signal 'Russia Cannot Win'

    PARIS (AP) — More than 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials are gathering in a... Read More

    PARIS (AP) — More than 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials are gathering in a show of unity for Ukraine, signaling to Russia that their support for Kyiv isn't wavering as the full-scale invasion grinds into a third year. French President Emmanuel Macron,... Read More

    Unlikely Challenger to Putin Brings Rare Show of Defiance, Creating Dilemma for Kremlin

    They have lined up by the thousands across Russia in recent days, standing in the bitter cold for a chance... Read More

    They have lined up by the thousands across Russia in recent days, standing in the bitter cold for a chance to sign petitions to support an unlikely challenger to President Vladimir Putin. Boris Nadezhdin has become a dilemma for the Kremlin as he seeks to run... Read More

    The UK and France Reiterate Russia's Invasion of Ukraine Must End in Failure as US Aid Falters

    PARIS (AP) — Britain and France reiterated their determination Tuesday that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine ends in failure, with the U.K.... Read More

    PARIS (AP) — Britain and France reiterated their determination Tuesday that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine ends in failure, with the U.K. foreign minister saying that Ukraine's allies must better leverage their economic might to vastly outmatch Moscow's war machine. The renewed insistence from U.K. Foreign Secretary David... Read More

    China's State Media Take a New Tone Toward US Ahead of Meeting Between Leaders

    Ahead of the highly anticipated meeting on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Chinese state media have... Read More

    Ahead of the highly anticipated meeting on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Chinese state media have taken a new tone toward the U.S. with less negative coverage, calls for a return to warmer ties and stories of Americans with positive connections to... Read More

    Albanese Arrives at White House to Start Day of Meetings and Celebrations

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden pressed forward with this week's state visit from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, carving out time... Read More

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden pressed forward with this week's state visit from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, carving out time to nurture the relationship with a critical U.S. ally in the Pacific against the backdrop of escalating fighting between Israel and Hamas. The state visit, only the... Read More

    Live Updates | Cease-Fire Pleas and Israel-Hamas Recriminations Rise in Wake of Gaza Hospital Blast

    President Joe Biden is in Israel on an urgent mission to keep the Israel-Hamas war from spiraling into a broader... Read More

    President Joe Biden is in Israel on an urgent mission to keep the Israel-Hamas war from spiraling into a broader regional conflict and to encourage the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. The president's visit on Wednesday came after hundreds of people were reported killed... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top