French President Emmanuel Macron began his second visit to Canada on Wednesday evening, which will focus on the Francophonie and artificial intelligence.
Emmanuel Macron, whose last visit was in June 2018 for a G7 summit, will have several meetings with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa and then Montreal.
The head of state arrived in Canada from New York and the UN, where he called on Israel on Wednesday to stop the escalation in Lebanon and to silence the guns in Gaza, where the war “has gone on too long.”
Mr Macron and Mr Trudeau, who both embodied a new generation of young and bold leaders when they came to power, are now experiencing the same political setbacks.
Emmanuel Macron lost the legislative elections he himself called and now shares power with a right-wing prime minister.
Justin Trudeau, very weakened after being abandoned by his NDP ally Jagmeet Singh a few weeks ago, survived a motion of censure on Wednesday, but others await him in the days to come.
AI and Francophonie
The two leaders will have the opportunity Wednesday evening to take a look at international crises and major global issues — and perhaps also their personal setbacks — during a tête-à-tête dinner at Rideau Cottage, Mr. Trudeau’s residence.
They intend to strengthen the strategic partnership between their countries, long-standing allies with very strong linguistic and cultural ties.
“Canada is an extremely close country, one of the closest outside the European Union,” recalled the French presidency ahead of the visit.
Emmanuel Macron will discuss on Thursday morning the revival of the Francophonie in Canada, beyond Quebec, with actors involved in this field, a week before a Francophonie Summit in France.
He will then meet Justin Trudeau for an official meeting, also in Ottawa, followed by a dinner on artificial intelligence, in which the Prime Minister will also participate, and a joint press conference in Montreal, where some 200,000 French people live.
Canada is a country at the forefront of AI, which is of particular interest to the Frenchman, a few months before an AI summit in February in France.
Emmanuel Macron will also praise “the attractiveness of France” to Canadian investors, as he did on Tuesday in New York during discussions with big names in finance, the Élysée stressed.
An unmissable meeting, Emmanuel Macron will also meet with the Premier of Quebec, François Legault. The meeting will take place in Montreal, and not in Quebec City itself, which has made Mayor Bruno Marchand grind his teeth.