French President Emmanuel Macron will meet with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden on June 8 during Biden's first state visit to France, the White House announced on May 30.
The two will meet after the U.S. leader's participation in the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings on June 6.
Other Western leaders and President Volodymyr Zelensky are also expected to visit the D-Day commemoration, although Kyiv has not yet officially confirmed the presence of Ukraine's president.
Macron and Biden will discuss long-term support for Ukraine, as well as ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in economic, space, and nuclear spheres, the French presidency said in a statement, the Associated Press reported, citing Macron’s office.
The meeting will take place amid discussions about lifting the ban on Ukraine's right to strike targets on Russian soil with Western weapons. This move has already been publicly supported by more than 10 countries, including France.
Washington and Berlin, the top two providers of military aid to Ukraine, have been hesitant to allow Kyiv to strike Russian territory.
The U.S. officials have repeatedly said that they do not support or encourage Kyiv's strikes with American weapons on Russian soil, while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz outright said that the policy won't change.
However, both countries are now signaling a potential change to their long-standing policy, according to recent statements and two articles published by Politico on May 29.
Elsa Court
(Updated: )
