UK royals welcome Macron for state visit with migration, Ukraine high on agenda

London | French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Britain on Tuesday for a state visit mixing royal pageantry with thorny political talks about stopping migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats.

Macron and Prime Minister Keir Starmer will also try to advance plans for a post-ceasefire security force for Ukraine, despite apparent US indifference to the idea and Russia's refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbour.

Macron's three-day visit, at the invitation of King Charles III, is the first state visit to the UK by a European Union head of state since Brexit, and a symbol of the British government's desire to reset relations with the bloc that the UK acrimoniously left in 2020.

Macron said the visit was an “important moment for our two nations.” “The United Kingdom is a strategic partner, an ally, a friend,” Macron wrote on X, in a marked change of tone from the years of wrangling over Brexit. "Our bond is longstanding, forged by history and strengthened by trust.” The president and his wife, Brigitte Macron, were greeted on a red carpet laid over the tarmac at London's RAF Northolt air base by Prince William and his wife Catherine, who was wearing a dress by French design house Christian Dior.

They were met in Windsor, west of London, by King Charles and Queen Camilla. A military band played the French and British national anthems as all four set out for the royal residence of Windsor Castle in horse-drawn carriages, through streets bedecked in Union Jacks and French tricolour flags.

Later the king and queen will host a state banquet for their guests. The British royals made a state visit to France in September 2023.

The monarch is expected to steer clear of politics, but Charles will make a broad appeal to international cooperation at the banquet, saying that Britain and France “face a multitude of complex threats” that “know no borders” – and that “no fortress can protect us against them.” Macron also will address both houses of Britain's Parliament in the building's fabulously ornate Royal Gallery before sitting down for talks with Starmer on migration, defense and investment.

'New tactics to stop boats'

At a UK-France summit on Thursday, senior government officials from the two countries will discuss small-boat crossings, a thorny issue for successive governments on both sides of the English Channel.

Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than Mediterranean European countries, but thousands of migrants each year use northern France as a launching point to reach the UK, either by stowing away in trucks or — after a clampdown on that route — in small boats across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

The UK has struck a series of deals with France over the years to increase patrols of beaches and share intelligence in an attempt to disrupt the smuggling gangs.

It has all had only a limited impact. About 37,000 people were detected crossing the English Channel in small boats in 2024, the second-highest annual figure after 46,000 in 2022. More than 20,000 people made the crossing in the first six months of 2025, up by about 50 per cent from the same period last year. Dozens of people have died attempting the crossing.

Starmer, whose centre-left government was elected a year ago, has pledged to “ smash the gangs ” behind organized people-smuggling. His plan rests on closer cooperation with France and with countries further up the migrants' route from Africa and the Middle East. The UK also aims to strike deals with individual nations to take back failed asylum seekers.

British officials have been pushing for French police to intervene more forcefully to stop the boats, and welcomed the sight of officers slashing rubber dinghies with knives in recent days.

UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the French are “bringing in important new tactics to stop boats that are in the water.” Britain also is pushing France to let officers intervene against boats in deeper waters, a change the government in Paris is considering. Campaigners for migrants' rights and a police union warn that doing so could endanger both migrants and officers.

Starmer's spokesperson, Tom Wells, said some of the tactics being discussed are “operationally and legally complex, but we're working closely with the French.”

Keeping Ukraine in focus

Starmer and Macron have worked closely together to rally support for Ukraine, though they have taken contrasting approaches to US President Donald Trump, with Macron more willing to challenge the American president than the emollient Starmer.

Britain and France have led efforts to form an international peacekeeping force for Ukraine to reinforce a future ceasefire with European troops and equipment and US security guarantees.

Trump has shown little enthusiasm for the idea, however, and a ceasefire remains elusive. British officials say the “coalition of the willing” idea is alive and well, with Macron and Starmer due to join an international videoconference on Thursday to discuss planning for the force.

Starmer spoke with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday about the “significant progress being made by military planners,” the British leader's office said.