French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron welcomed today US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden with full military honors in a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
A military choir and a gendarmerie orchestra performed the "Marseillaise", and over the "Charles de Gaulle" square fighter jets flew over.
The two leaders laid a wreath and observed a moment of silence at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, which is located under the national monument in the center of the French capital.
The area around the square was completely cordoned off by the police and gendarmerie and access to the security perimeter was only possible by invitation. Guests and journalists accredited for the event had to arrive an hour and a half before the start of the ceremony. A BTA reporter saw the police denying entry to four ambassadors who had failed to arrive on time due to the traffic chaos caused by the tight security measures.
After the Arc de Triomphe ceremony, Macron and Biden headed in motorcades along the Champs-Elysées Boulevard, decorated in the colors of the national flags of France and the United States. Biden's motorcade included the iconic two armored Cadillacs, one of which was driven by the US president.
He was preceded and followed by horse guards, and brass music was played - part of the full military honors with which the master of the White House was greeted on his official visit to France.
The two leaders held a meeting at the Elysee Palace, and later today Macron will host an official dinner in honor of the American guest.