Trump In Paris For Reopening Of 'dazzling' Notre Dame

Faizan Hashmi Published December 07, 2024 | 05:10 PM

Paris, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 7th Dec, 2024) US president-elect Donald Trump on Saturday arrived in Paris to join other world leaders for the reopening of the French capital's Notre Dame cathedral, celebrating the restoration to its former glory half a decade after the devastating fire.

Held up as an example of French creativity and resilience by President Emmanuel Macron, Notre Dame's renaissance so soon after a 2019 blaze that destroyed its roof and spire comes at a difficult time for the country.

Macron scored a major coup by attracting Trump, on his first foreign trip since his election, for the re-opening which will officially take place when archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich opens the doors to the cathedral at 1800 GMT for an almost two-hour ceremony.

The president-elect is to hold talks with Macron and may also meet Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, one of scores of other world leaders descending on Paris for the day.

But the sense of national accomplishment in restoring a beloved symbol of Paris has been undercut by political turmoil that has left France without a proper government and in a budget crisis.