France-US Relations:Trump touts ‘wonderful friendship’ with Macron at ceremony "as he brushes Macron's dandruff from his jacket" - by Yaron Steinbuch

Donald Trump inspect Emmanuel Macron for dandruff

Hosting his first state visit, President Trump on Tuesday morning welcomed his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to the White House during a formal arrival ceremony on the South Lawn.

The president and First Lady Melania Trump greeted Macron and his wife, Brigitte, amid heavy pomp as almost 500 service members from all five branches of the military stood at attention for a “Review of the Troops.”

Vice President Mike Pence, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Chief of Staff John Kelly were among those in attendance to shake hands with the two leaders and their spouses.

Trump and Macron both sent their condolences to the families of the victims of the deadly van attack Monday in Toronto, as well as to the Bush family after the death of former First Lady Barbara Bush.
Former President George H.W. Bush has since been hospitalized with a blood infection.

Speaking in French, Macron said he wished to “express our deepest sympathy to President Bush and his family,” adding that at this time, “We stand together.”

In his remarks, Trump hailed France for its role in helping to respond to a chemical attack on civilians in the Damascus enclave of Douma in Syria.

“Along with our British friends, the United States and France recently took decisive action in response to the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons,” Trump said.

The two leaders are meeting on a number of issues, including the future of the Iran nuclear deal and the crisis in Syria.

On Tuesday evening, Macron will be honored with Trump’s first state dinner, where about 150 guests will dine on rack of lamb and nectarine tart before enjoying a performance by the Washington National Opera

Note EU-Digest: Even though the US President tried to be on his best behavior during the Macron welcoming ceremony, he was not able to contain himself to show his "macho side",  when, while speaking about his good relationship with Macron, he leaned over to him and brushed away some imaginary dandruff, and said: I like him a lot, so much so, that I even brushed off the dandruff he had on his jacket.

As Herbert Read, a famous British art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher wrote: "The worth of a civilization or a culture is not valued in the terms of its material wealth or military power, but by the quality and achievements of its representative individuals - its philosophers, its poets and its artists. Unfortunately the President of the US, Donald Trump possesses none of these qualities. 

EU-Digest

Greece: Government gearing up for crucial week and Macron visit

French President Emmanuel Macron’s two-day visit to Athens, which starts on Thursday,August 7th, will take place against the backdrop of Germany’s call, issued on Sunday, for an end to Turkey’s European Union membership talks.

The latest escalation in tensions between Berlin and Ankara could have a pivotal impact on the geostrategic balance in Southeastern Europe, and could trigger changes in a wide range of issues that affect Greece directly, such as the flow of migrants and refugees from Turkey into Europe, as well as energy routes.

Given the breakdown in relations between Germany and Turkey, as well as the demeanor and incendiary rhetoric of the latter’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Athens will be seeking again to highlight Greece’s importance as a bastion of stability in the region.

Moreover, aides to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras view the visit by the French president as a first step in the discussion within the European Union about the lessons learnt from its financial crisis and the ways to avoid similar crises in the future.

The leftist-led coalition may be in disagreement with labor law changes in France announced by Macron last week, but aides have said it is not an obstacle to a common perspective on a wide range of other issues.

Apart from the future course of the EU, the PM’s aides believe that Macron’s visit will also be seen as vote of confidence in the government’s narrative that Greece has turned a corner after its years-long financial crisis. Tsipras is seeking to strengthen relations with Paris as a counterbalance to the austerity being demanded by Berlin.

More specifically, the Greek premier is hoping for some concrete decisions to be announced during the visit following interest expressed by French companies in investing in Greece.

Read more: Government gearing up for crucial week | News | ekathimerini.com

Russia-French relations: French President Macron to host Russia’s Putin at Versailles palace

Macron=Putin meeting at Versailles Palace May 29

The meeting coincides with an exhibition to mark Russian Tsar Peter the Great’s visit to France 300 years ago, providing a perfect photo opportunity for the world’s press -- and for people-watchers -- to capture the two leaders shaking hands with Versailles Palace being used as a symbolic backdrop to demonstrate the historic ties between France and Russia.

The meeting between Macron and Putin is set to be a very closely watched event because the two presidents are expected to touch on an array of critical issues, including both Syria and Ukraine.

Macron has previously said Russia's bombing of the Syrian city of Aleppo could amount to a war crime.

Macron's presidential campaign was also subjected to repeated cyber-attacks, with the Japanese cyber-security firm Trend Micro telling FRANCE 24, "We are 99 percent sure that it is attacks from Russia".

His aides accused the Kremlin of mounting a "smear campaign" against him, with one of the major hacking attacks seeing troves of real and fake documents involving Macron’s campaign team being released online just before the vote. The incident seemed to have had little effect on the country’s voters, however, as the French media heeded a call from the election authorities to respect the French law regarding a nationwide press blackout in the final hours leading up to the vote.

Speaking last Friday, Russia's ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, said Moscow had a "positive perception" of Macron, describing him as "very intelligent, realistic and pragmatic".

"I think he's not very ideological compared with his predecessors," Orlov told a meeting of business leaders. "With him we have more chances of moving forward than before."

The May 30-September 24 exhibition at the Versailles Palace marks Russian Tsar Peter the Great’s trip to France in 1717 and there will be a special exhibition in the Palace’s Grand Trianon. 

Read more: French President Macron to host Russia’s Putin at Versailles palace - France 24

Mexico-US Relations: Mexican president cancels meeting with Trump (after being insulted) - by David Jackson

President Trump's proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico drove a diplomatic divide between the two countries Thursday, as Mexican counterpart Enrique Peña Nieto canceled a scheduled meeting with the new American president.

Trump, speaking to a congressional Republican retreat in Philadelphia, said he and Peña Nieto "agreed" to the cancellation; the president said he has made it clear to Mexico that it will finance the proposed wall and that the U.S. will seek changes to trade agreement with its southern neighbor.

“Unless Mexico is going to treat the United States fairly, with respect, such a meeting would be fruitless and I want to go a different route," Trump said. "We have no choice.”

Read more: Mexican president cancels meeting with Trump

Cuba-USA: White House announces that Obama will visit Cuba in March

Barack Obama will end decades of cold war hostility and mistrust by visiting Cuba in March, a move set to go down as one of the foreign policy milestones of his presidency.

“Next month, I’ll travel to Cuba to advance our progress and efforts that can improve the lives of the Cuban people,” Obama wrote on Twitter on Thursday.

He will meet the Cuban president, Raúl Castro, but not his 89-year-old brother Fidel, who after the 1959 communist revolution became one of Washington’s most notorious bogeymen and a target for numerous assassination plots by the CIA. As Fidel’s health declined, Raúl took over the presidency and was officially elected in 2008.

Ben Rhodes, Obama’s deputy national security adviser, told reporters at the White House: “I wouldn’t expect him to meet with Fidel Castro. Raúl Castro is the president of Cuba. He’ll certainly meet with President Castro.”

Read more: White House announces that Obama will visit Cuba in March | US news | The Guardian

EU - US President Obama Plans to Visit Pope Francis, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy in March - by Alle Bowel

President Barack Obama will travel to Italy in March to meet with Pope Francis for the first time, the White House announced Tuesday.

The March 27 visit to the Vatican comes as part of a European tour during which Obama will also visit the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy.

"The president looks forward to discussing with Pope Francis their shared commitment to fighting poverty and growing inequality," said a White House statement.

Before arriving in Vatican City, Obama will spend two days in the Netherlands participating in the Nuclear Security Summit, hosted by the Dutch government. Those gathered will discuss security processes for nuclear materials, the statement said.

Read more: President Obama Plans to Visit Pope Francis in March - US News and World Report

Middle East: Mixed reception awaits Obama in Israel and West Bank

President Barack Obama will spend about seven hours with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday.

Obama will also spend five hours with Palestinian leaders, but have much less to discuss. One item will dominate the agenda – how to form a Palestinian state. 

Read more: Mixed reception awaits Obama in Israel and West Bank - PhotoBlog

Turkish president kicks off three-day visit to the Netherlands

Turkey's president Abdullah Gül and his wife Hayrunissa arrived in the Netherlands on Monday for a three-day state visit to commemorate 400 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

On Tuesday morning the couple will meet queen Beatrix at the palace on Amsterdam's Dam square before laying a wreath at the war memorial in the presence of prime minister Mark Rutte, the Telegraaf said.

Amsterdam's mayor Eberhard van der Laan has evoked his emergency powers for the duration of the visit because of the risk of trouble between Dutch Turks and Kurds in the capital. There were several minor clashes between the two groups last year.

The visit has also been the subject of much media speculation, with the Volkskrant and AD saying Rutte has a difficult job in the coming week: not only is he involved in negotiations to cut government spending, but he must also hope Geert Wilders does not step out of line. ‘Treating a certain race or religion as the enemy and xenophobia are illnesses which can have very serious consquences,’ Gül told the paper. ‘Look what happened in Europe during World War II.’

For more: DutchNews.nl - Turkish president kicks off three-day visit to the Netherlands

The Netherlands: Turkish President calls Wilders islamophobe

Turkish President Abdullah Gül has called Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders an islamophobe. In an interview with Dutch mass-circulation daily De Telegraaf, President Gül said Mr Wilders represents an extreme voice, which feeds radicals."

He continued, saying because of Wilders “a negative us-against-them climate is developing in the whole of Europe, which is laying the foundation for ethnic religious discrimination.” Nevertheless, the president said he would shake the hand of the leader of the anti-Islam party if he met him.

President Gül is in the Netherlands on a three-day trip in the coming week to mark 400 years of relations between Turkey and the Netherlands at the invitation of the Dutch government.

For more: Turkish President calls Wilders islamophobe < Dutch news | Expatica The Netherlands