US Secretary of State Blinken to meet French President Macron in Paris for talks on Ukraine, Gaza

Speaking about aiding Ukraine in its struggle with Russia and the Israel-Hamas conflict, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Tuesday.

France is one of the main military providers to Ukraine, which is struggling to stave off a wave of Russian strikes due to a severe shortage of troops and weapons.

The main military supporter of Ukraine has been the United States, although a $60 billion aid package has been delayed by Congress.

Additionally, Paris has supported an ongoing cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. A resolution calling for a truce throughout the month of Ramadan was just approved by the UN Security Council with support from the United States, Israel’s principal supporter.

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Macron and Blinken will meet to talk about the growing global challenges, the French presidency informed AFP. Additionally, he will speak with Stephane Sejourne, the foreign minister.

In February, France organised a global summit with the aim of mobilising monetary and military backing for Ukraine. According to sources, Blinken and French officials will analyse the results.

“Intensification” of support for Ukraine is what both parties desire, according to a member of Sejourne’s entourage.

The French minister was in China on Monday, urging Beijing to put pressure on Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine, and in Cairo on Saturday, they discussed the Gaza war.

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The French foreign ministry said Sejourne and Blinken will discuss preparations for a NATO summit in Washington in July, as well as the “crises” in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan.

They will hold a joint press conference after their meeting.

In a symbolic visit, Blinken was to accompany France’s Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu to a factory near Paris of Franco-German defence group KNDS, which makes artillery guns being used in Ukraine.

Blinken will also visit the Paris headquarters of UNESCO, the United States’ cultural agency that it rejoined last year. Blinken is scheduled to meet with Audrey Azoulay, the head of UNESCO.

The visit marks the first trip to France for Blinken, a fluent French speaker, in nearly two years.

Macron paid a state visit to Washington in December 2022.

After Paris, Blinken will head to Brussels for NATO foreign ministers’ talks ahead of the alliance’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington in July.

Blinken will also hold a three-way meeting in Brussels with EU leaders and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has been seeking to branch out from his country’s historic alliance with Russia.