Yellow jersey, snowflakes and traditional dance… The day after a fairly standard first day in Paris, Xi Jinping made the second and last day of his visit to France, this Tuesday, May 7, 2024. After discussions on Ukraine , trade or human rights on Monday, this stage was imagined more as an escapade “personal” with Emmanuel Macron.
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Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan landed at Tarbes airport late in the morning. They were welcomed by Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron. At the start of the afternoon, they then went to the Col du Tourmalet, the legendary climb of the Tour de France, at an altitude of 2,115 m.
Under heavy snowflakes, the sound of the three-hole flute and the accordion rang out, while dancers in traditional clothing performed, arms raised, a few steps in front of the two presidents, all smiles, sheltered under large black umbrellas.
Typical Pyrenean meal
The two couples then went to l’Étape du Berger, the high-altitude restaurant of Eric Abadie, a breeder friend of Emmanuel Macron, where they shared a typically Pyrenean meal – ham, lamb, cheese, blueberry tart – at the ‘Step of the Shepherd
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The French president offered several gifts to its counterpart: wool blankets from the Pyrenees, a bottle of Armagnac, berets or even a yellow jersey from the Tour de France.
“I know you like sports […] We would be delighted to have Chinese riders on the Tour”launches the French president who welcomes his Chinese counterpart to France for the first time since 2019. Xi Jinping promises in return to advertise local ham before ensuring “love cheeses a lot”.
“Sharing our personal stories”
This Pyrenean getaway was symbolic for Emmanuel Macron since he spent part of his childhood there and it is here that his grandmother, who died in 2013, rests. It is intended as a sort of response to the tea ceremony that the two leaders shared last year, in Canton, in the official residence where the Chinese president’s father had lived when he was governor of Guangdong province.
“It is also through sharing our personal stories that our relationships take shape. Very happy to welcome you to the Col du Tourmalet in these Hautes-Pyrénées which are so dear to me, President XI Jinping, as you welcomed me to Canton”wrote Emmanuel Macron on X.
“Today’s sequence embodies this intimacy that we seek between the two leaders in order to hold a dialogue that is both friendly but also very frank”also welcomed the French presidency. “Few leaders around the world have this opportunity to interact with President Xi Jinping”she added, emphasizing the “special relationship” tied by Emmanuel Macron with Xi Jinping.
After these two days in France, Xi Jinping will continue his tour of Europe with a visit to Serbia and then Hungary.
