French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Britain for a state visit mixing royal pageantry with thorny political talks about stopping migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats.

Axar.az informs via AP, Macron and Prime Minister Keir Starmer also tried to advance plans for a post-ceasefire security force for Ukraine despite apparent US indifference to the idea and Russia’s refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbor.

Macron’s three-day visit at the invitation of King Charles III was the first state visit to the UK by a European Union head of state since Brexit and a symbol of the British government’s desire to reset relations with the bloc that the UK acrimoniously left in 2020.

The president and his wife, Brigitte Macron, were driven to Windsor Castle by horse-drawn carriage, greeted by a military honor guard, and treated to a state banquet hosted by the king and Queen Camilla. The British royals made a state visit to France in September 2023.

Macron also addressed both houses of Britain’s Parliament in the building’s fabulously ornate Royal Gallery before sitting down for talks with Starmer on migration, defense, and investment.