President Zelensky expected to attend Notre Dame opening in Paris - media
In Paris, President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to attend the opening ceremony of the restored Notre Dame Cathedral on December 7, which is also expected to be attended by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and about 40 other heads of state and government.
This was reported by Le Monde with reference to AFP’s diplomatic sources, Ukrinform saw.
"Zelensky is expected in Paris," one of these sources confirmed.
In addition to Trump, about 40 heads of state and government will attend the opening of Notre Dame Cathedral, which was seriously damaged by a fire in April 2019. The incumbent U.S. President, Joe Biden, will be represented by his wife Jill.
Also confirmed to be present is President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Italian President Sergio Mattarella, Poland’s President Andrzej Duda, Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, President of Estonia Alar Karis, Finland’s President Alexander Stubb and Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will also take part in the celebrations.
Among those expected to arrive in Paris are Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, as well as Serbian Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, and Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof.
French President Emmanuel Macron will speak at the event. After his address, the doors of the renovated Notre Dame Cathedral will be opened and a message from Pope Francis will be read out. Earlier, the pontiff declined an invitation to participate in the ceremony.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron and his spouse visited Notre Dame Cathedral, which will be opened to visitors in a week following five-year reconstruction due to the damage from a massive fire.
Photo: Office of the President