King Charles lights flame at Paris’s Arc de Triomphe for start of three-day visit

Visit designed in part as show of friendship to reset UK-French relationship after Brexit years

King Charles lit the flame at the tomb of the unknown soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris before travelling down the Champs-Elysées with Emmanuel Macron at the start of a three-day state visit.

At the Arc de Triomphe, the 74-year-old king and 45-year-old president commemorated Britain and France’s common sacrifices and ongoing military cooperation before next year’s 80th anniversary of the D-day landings. It was part of a show of friendship designed to show the positive reset of the UK-French relationship after the near-total collapse in trust during the Boris Johnson years after Brexit.