Macron hosts Xi in French mountains to talk Ukraine and trade

French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the Tarbes airport, France, on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. - Reuters

TARBES, France (AFP): French President Emmanuel Macron was on Tuesday hosting Chinese leader Xi Jinping at one of his beloved childhood haunts in the Pyrenees mountains, pressing a message to Beijing not to support Russia's war against Ukraine and to accept fairer trade.

The first day of Xi's state visit to France, his first to Europe since 2019, saw respectful but sometimes robust exchanges between the two men during a succession of talks on Monday.