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World leaders gather as Notre Dame reopens after fire

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World leaders gather as Notre Dame reopens after fire

US President-elect Donald Trump will join leaders for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, a visit that could offer President Emmanuel Macron an opportunity to play the role of mediator between Europe and the unpredictable US politician, a role he has relished in the past.

A trilateral meeting between Mr Macron, Mr Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is taking place on the sidelines of the Notre Dame event, the French president’s office said.

While no agenda for the talks was announced, European leaders are concerned that Trump could withdraw US military aid to Ukraine at a crucial juncture in its war to repel Russian invaders.

Mr Macron is a strong supporter of the NATO alliance and Ukraine’s fight, while Trump feels European nations need to pay more for their common defence and that a negotiated settlement is needed to end the Ukraine war.

“Mr Macron is repeating his personalized approach which had some limited success during Mr. Trump’s first term. Macron knows Mr Trump greatly appreciates the pomp, circumstance and grandeur of state and he provides it to him in abundance,” said Heather Conley, senior adviser to the board of the German Marshall Fund, which promotes US-European ties.

Mr Trump will join dozens of world leaders and foreign dignitaries for the ceremony reopening Notre Dame Cathedral five and a half years after it was ravaged by fire.

The facade of the restored cathedral at Notre Dame

While Mr Trump has yet to be sworn in as US president he has already held discussions with a number of world leaders, and members of his team are trying to get up to speed on a burgeoning number of world crises, including Ukraine and the Middle East.

President Joe Biden’s wife, first lady Jill Biden, will represent the United States at the Notre Dame reopening.

One surprising absentee will be Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, who has decided against breaking off from a weekend trip to the French island of Corsica.

A message from Francis addressed to the French people will be read out to the congregation of VIPs, church figures and selected members of the public when the service begins this evening.

‘Universal sadness’

Parisians watched in horror in 2019 as flames ravaged Notre Dame, a landmark famed as the setting for Victor Hugo’s novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame and one of the world’s most visited monuments.

The apocalyptic images were even seen by some as a sign of the demise of Western civilisation, with the 850-year-old wonder saved from complete collapse only by the heroic intervention of firefighters.

The exact cause of the blaze has never been identified despite a forensic investigation by prosecutors, who believe an accident such as an electrical fault was the most likely reason.

“We felt a sense of universal sadness when Notre Dame burned,” said fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, who has dreamed up colourful new priestly vestments that will be worn by senior clergy today.

Notre Dame Cathedral was extensively damaged by fire in 2019

The service will feature prayer, organ music and hymns from the cathedral’s choir, followed by a televised concert with performances by Chinese piano virtuoso Lang Lang, South African opera singer Pretty Yende and possibly US singer and fashion designer Pharrell Williams.

Harsh weather forced officials to move Mr Macron’s planned speech indoors and pre-record the concert last night, with forecasts for winds of up to 80km/h as Storm Darragh put parts of France on red alert.

Tomorrow morning, the first mass with 170 bishops and more than 100 Paris priests will take place, followed by a second service in the evening which will be open to the public.

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