Trump to attend Notre Dame cathedral's reopening in Paris

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris will reopen on Saturday, marking the restoration of the iconic Gothic structure five years after it was severely damaged by a fire.

The Republican has confirmed he had accepted an invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron to attend the grand re-opening of the 850-year-old edifice which was nearly lost to flames in April 2019, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

It will be Trump's first foreign trip since his re-election last month in a political comeback that has set off alarm bells in much of Europe, including in France where Macron regularly tussled with the New York real estate tycoon during his first term.

Trump posted on his Truth Social website that Macron had "done a wonderful job ensuring that Notre Dame has been restored to its full level of glory, and even more so. It will be a very special day for all!"

The presence of Trump is likely to encourage other world political leaders to attend as they seek to build relations and head off possible disputes over trade and defence before his January 20 inauguration.

After Trump first took office in 2017, his relations with Macron -- then also a fresh new face on the world stage -- had the initial makings of a "bromance".

Their long and muscular handshakes -- which saw each man seek to assert his superiority -- became a light-hearted focus of attention before ties cooled, then soured, following disputes about climate change, trade and defence.

Trump publicly mocked Macron's "very low approval rating" and even aimed a jibe at France's war history after a rancorous 2018 trip to the country.

Macron's current political problems, with his latest government likely to fall this week and the parliament deadlocked, risk overshadowing Saturday's ceremony which the French leader hoped to present as a moment of national and personal triumph.

News.Az