France and the United States are "
on the same line
" on the need to cooperate on major international issues, assured US President Joe Biden on Saturday during his first meeting with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
Read also: "Strategic empathy" at the heart of Joe Biden's diplomacy
It was the first side meeting for the two leaders, on the sidelines of the G7 Powers Summit in South West England, since Joe Biden came to power in January.
"
We have to face this pandemic, we have to face a lot of crises, climate change, and we need cooperation for all these problems,
" Emmanuel Macron said in English, at the beginning of their exchange.
"
And I think it's great to have a US president very eager to cooperate,
" he added, considering that the Democratic leader had shown "
leadership in the partnership
".
"
We're on the same line,
" replied Joe Biden, sitting beside him in front of a sandy beach.
He underlined that he had "
the cohesion of NATO very much at heart
" and considered the European Union as an "
incredibly strong and energetic
" organization.
Is the French president convinced, as his ally says, of the United States' return to the international scene?
"
Certainly,
" he replied to the press before it was led to the exit.
These courtesies between the two leaders contrast with the harshness that marked the first meeting between Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump in 2017, with a manly handshake on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Brussels.
The French president had long resisted the iron fist of his counterpart. "
A moment of truth
", he had said shortly after, seeing in it a way of not indulging in "
small concessions, even symbolic
".
