France’s famous cathedral will reopen Saturday after five years of reconstruction following a devastating fire in 2019.
US president-elect Donald Trump will attend the reopening ceremony at France’s iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris this weekend, in his first foreign trip since winning re-election in November.
Notre Dame will reopen in a lavish ceremony attended by around 50 heads of state and government after it was nearly destroyed by a fire in 2019.
“It is an honour to announce that I will be travelling to Paris, France, on Saturday to attend the re-opening of the Magnificent and Historic Notre Dame Cathedral, which has been fully restored after a devastating fire five years ago,” announced Trump on his platform Truth Social.
The president-elect heaped praise on France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, saying he had done a “wonderful job ensuring the Notre Dame has been restored to its full level of glory”.
Trump was president in 2019 when a huge fire engulfed the cathedral, collapsing its spire and threatening to destroy the iconic monument.
At the time, Trump posted on what X (then known as Twitter) offering his advice to the city.
“Perhaps flying water tankers could be used to put it out. Must act quickly!” he wrote.
The fire was eventually extinguished by French officials, who noted that using water bombing aircraft could lead “to the collapse of the entire structure of the cathedral”.
Trump announced at the time he had offered Macron his condolences and US “experts on renovation and construction” in order to restore the landmark to its former glory.
Trump and Macron reunite
During Trump’s first term, Macron and Trump had an amicable relationship that quickly soured as Trump questioned the need for NATO and America’s membership to the military alliance.
Trump often mocked Macron on his campaign trail this year, imitating his accent and threatening to impose steep tariffs on French wine and champagne if France tried to tax US companies.
Macron was one of the first European leaders to congratulate the president-elect on winning his second term, writing on X that he was “ready to work together as we did for four years. With your convictions and mine. With respect and ambition. For more peace and prosperity”.
The French president and other European leaders are keen to persuade Trump not to abandon US support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.
The reopening of Notre Dame is set to be an elaborate, multi-day celebration starting on Saturday.
Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich will preside at a reopening service that afternoon, banging on Notre Dame’s shuttered doors with his staff to reopen them.
There will follow a show broadcast on France Télévisions, including artists such as Chinese pianist Lang Lang, Paris-born cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Benin-born singer Angelique Kidjo, Lebanese singer Hiba Tawaji, and opera singers Pretty Yende, from South Africa, and Julie Fuchs, from France.
On Sunday morning, the archbishop of Paris will lead an inaugural mass and consecration of the new altar.
