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Macron Starting State Visit with Trump

by Ken Bredemeier

   U.S. President Donald Trump is welcoming French President Emmanuel
   Macron to the White House on Monday for a three-day state visit, during
   which the two leaders have scheduled a mix of official meetings and
   social events.

   WATCH: Macron remarks shortly after landing in Washington

   Shortly after his arrival, the French leader and his wife Brigitte
   Macron, Trump and his wife, first lady Melania Trump, are planting a
   European Sessile Oak sapling on the South Lawn of the White House, a
   gift from the Macrons.

   About a meter and a half tall and between five and 10 years old, the
   tree comes from Belleau Wood, where more than 9,000 American Marines
   died in a 1918 World War I battle on French soil as allied forces
   fought off German troops.

   'The two couples are then taking a helicopter tour of historic
   monuments in Washington before heading to Mt. Vernon, the majestic 18th
   century estate of the first U.S. president, George Washington, that
   overlooks the Potomac River in nearby Virginia. They are touring
   Washington's white, British Palladian-style mansion, one of the
   country's most popular tourist sites, before having dinner there.

   On Tuesday, Trump and his wife are hosting the official military
   welcoming ceremony at the White House for the Macrons that will include
   nearly 500 U.S. troops from all five branches of its armed forces.

   The leaders will then hold official talks, with Macron set to try to
   keep Trump from withdrawing next month from the 2015 international pact
   restraining Iran's nuclear weapons development. The United States and
   France, along with Britain, Germany, Russia and China, negotiated the
   agreement with Tehran in exchange for lifting sanctions that had
   hobbled Iran's economy.

   But Trump says the deal is the "worst ever" negotiated by the United
   States and will eventually allow Iran to build a nuclear weapon. Macron
   and Trump are also expected to discuss trade issues, the continuing
   civil war in Syria and other world concerns.

   The Trumps are hosting their first state dinner for the Macrons on
   Tuesday at the White House, with the Washington National Opera set to
   entertain.

   Macron is addressing Congress, in English, on Wednesday, before heading
   back to Paris.