Theresa May and Emmanuel Macron inspected British troops today as cold rain battered Sandhurst.

The Prime Minister and French President stood on a dais overlooking the Parade Square as the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards presented their bayonet-tipped SA80 rifles.

The band struck up the French national anthem La Marseillaise as the leaders arrived at the Royal Military Academy, walking the final 300 yards after stepping out of Mrs May's dark green armoured Jaguar XJL.

Amid high-security at Sandhurst, they watched mounted soldiers from the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery before a fly past of a 1,550mph RAF Typhoon fighter and a 1,200mph French air force Dassault Rafale.

Chancellor Philip Hammond, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson stood and watched the ceremony before meetings with their French counterparts.

Earlier, Mrs May and Mr Macron tucked into lunch at a pub owned by chat show host Sir Michael Parkinson

lunch at the Michelin-starred Royal Oak in Littlefield Green, in the PM's constituency of Maidenhead, Berks.

Their slap-up meal was cooked by Craig Johnston, last year's winner of MasterChef: The Professionals.

He prepared dressed crab, blood orange and radicchio and sorrel to start, followed by carver duck breast, roasted onion tartlet and beetroot purée.

They washed down their food with two French wines: a riesling and a 2013 Domaine Grand Romane.

Mr Macron is a flying visit to Britain for the 35th UK-France Summit.

It is his first trip to the country since winning last year's race for the Elysee Palace.

He and Mrs May will hold talks on defence and security, including the Anglo-French order at Calais, before giving a press conference later. </s> , Sandhurst, United Kingdom, Jan 18 – Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed her French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Thursday for a high-profile summit, preceded by a British promise to pay more for border security in the migrant hot-spot of Calais.

The two leaders arrived at the Sandhurst military academy near London for the wide-ranging talks, following lunch at the Royal Oak pub in May’s Maidenhead constituency.

The French flag was flying at the academy where the two were greeted by a guard honour and the sounds of the French national anthem on a rainy day.

Macron’s arrival comes hours after the UK government pledged an extra £44.5 million (50 million euros, $62 million) to boost security around Calais following a request from Macron.

The funding will go towards fencing, CCTV and detection technology in the northern French port city as well as at other points along the Channel from which migrants regularly attempt to reach British shores by ferry or train.

While the two countries cooperate closely in numerous areas, including intelligence and defence, differences over migration have strained ties.

The money would be on top of more than £100 million already paid by Britain following a border deal between the two countries that has now been renegotiated and is due to be signed on Thursday.

The announcement followed France playing its own diplomatic card with a promise to loan Britain the Bayeux Tapestry.

The offer was confirmed by May who Wednesday heralded the “very significant” decision to temporarily move the celebrated thousand-years-old artwork, which depicts the Norman conquest of England.

May’s Downing Street office said the summit was an opportunity to “further our shared aims and ambitions and demonstrate our close ties.”

The British and French leaders also aim to deepen cooperation in tackling terrorism at the meeting, as the UK tries to strengthen bilateral ties before leaving the European Union in March 2019.

The gathering at Sandhurst military academy — the 35th UK-France summit — is expected to focus on the sensitive issue of immigration as hundreds of people continue to camp out in Calais.

In addition to more funds from Britain, a UK government spokesman said May is also expected to welcome young refugees stuck in the city.

The two countries currently abide by the 15-year-old Treaty of Le Touquet, which permits immigration checks within each other’s borders.

A new treaty will be signed at Thursday’s summit to complement the 2003 deal, according to French officials.

The extra £44.5 million pledge was criticised in the British press, with the right-wing Daily Mail calling the Bayeux Tapestry offer as “a sweetener” and dubbing the Calais agreement “Le Stich-up!”

Macron is expected to confirm on Thursday that France will agree in principle to loan the fragile 941-year-old embroidery.

The Sun tabloid created its own “Bye-EU Tapestry”, charting Britain’s victorious exit from the European Union.

Despite Brexit dominating the political debate in the UK, the issue is not scheduled for formal discussion at the summit but it will likely come up in talks on other topics, a British official said.

The British prime minister is also set to commit to sending Royal Air Force (RAF) helicopters to a key French counter-terrorism operation in Mali.

The deployment of three RAF Chinook helicopters to provide logistic support to French troops tackling jihadis across Africa’s Sahel region is part of broader counter-terrorism and military efforts there by the UN, the EU and the African Union.

It is seen as particularly significant as France is lacking in such capabilities and Britain’s commitment could mark the start of a longer-term deployment in the region.

“Recent terrorist attacks across Europe underline the scale of the cross-border challenge we face in keeping our citizens safe,” a UK government spokesman said.

France in turn has agreed to commit troops to the British-led NATO battlegroup in Estonia in 2019.

At the summit the pair will also discuss their joint crackdown on online extremism “to ensure that the internet cannot be used as a safe space for terrorists and criminals,” the spokesman said.

Britain is also expected to allocate £50 million in additional aid for those affected by epidemics, natural disasters and conflict across Mali, Niger, Chad, North Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Mauritania. </s> CAMBERLEY, England (AP) - The Latest on the meeting Thursday between French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Theresa May (all times local):

French President Emmanuel Macron says Britain and France have signed a treaty to improve the management of their common border and to deal more humanely with migrants.

Macron says the Sandhurst Treaty was signed by the two countries’ interior ministers at a summit Thursday at Britain’s Sandhurst military academy.

He says it will cut the time it takes to process migrants who gather in the northern French port of Calais hoping to reach Britain, and to treat them more humanely and efficiently. Macron wants Britain to take more migrants from Calais but no figure was given Thursday.

Macron says the border issue “is a common challenge and we shall succeed together.”

In a significant gesture, British Prime Minister Theresa May has offered funds to ease French annoyance over a 2003 deal that placed British border controls in Calais, on the French side of the English Channel.

The town has become a magnet for migrants hoping to reach Britain, and the accord puts the burden of blocking their entry to the U.K. on France.

Britain agreed Thursday to pay 44.5 million pounds ($62 million) for fences, security cameras and other measures in Calais and nearby English Channel ports. France also wants Britain to take in more migrants from Calais, especially unaccompanied children, but there was no announcement on that issue.

The U.K. also said it will send three Royal Air Force Chinook helicopters and dozens of personnel to join France’s military mission against Islamic militants in Africa’s Sahel region. France has led efforts to fight al-Qaida and IS-linked jihadi groups in the vast region south of the Sahara desert.

The leaders of Britain and France have met against a military backdrop, with the U.K. promising to help boost border security in France and support French military missions as part of moves to bind the countries closer together after Brexit.

The announcement came as U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron held a bilateral summit Thursday intended to strengthen security and intelligence ties between the neighboring nations, and to build goodwill as Britain negotiates its exit from the European Union.

The venue - the Sandhurst military academy southwest of London - was selected as a signal that the relationship between western Europe’s two biggest military powers won’t be weakened once the U.K. leaves the EU in 2019.

It’s Macron’s first visit to Britain since he became president of France in May 2017. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to commemorate their countries' shared sacrifice in the First World War on Friday and discuss the future of their post-Brexit relationship.

The commemoration, just ahead of the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI, will be held at the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, in northern France, near the Belgian border.

The memorial commemorates 72,337 missing British and South African servicemen who died between 1915 and 1918 in a series of battles along the Somme river and who have no known grave.

May was to start the day with a visit to St Symphorien Military Cemetery in Mons, in Belgium, where she and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel were to lay a wreath at the graves of the first and last soldiers killed on the Western Front.

"A century ago British forces fought side by side with our allies in Europe on the Western Front. Today in France and Belgium we reflect on our shared history, but also look ahead to our shared future, built on peace, prosperity and friendship," May said in a statement.

Following a reception with British and Belgian serving armed forces in Mons, May will travel to France where she will meet Macron in Albert, a town in the heart of the Somme region which suffered significant bombardment during the First World War.

The leaders will hold a working lunch, where Brexit is expected to be top of the agenda, before laying a wreath at the Thiepval Memorial.

The wreath, made for the occasion, will combine poppies and le bleuet, the two national emblems of remembrance for Britain and France.

France has taken a hard line in Brexit negotiations, with President Emmanuel Macron insistent that Britain should not be allowed to negotiate advantages for itself as it withdraws from the European Union.

Negotiators have been racing the clock to try to agree the outlines of an agreement to settle Britain's exit that could be approved at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels this month.

But hopes of meeting that deadline are fading.

Britain's foreign minister played down the prospect of an imminent deal on Thursday and called for greater efforts to be made in the negotiations to "understand the other's perspective."

On Saturday, May is to attend the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

On Remembrance Sunday, she will lay a wreath at the Cenotaph in London and attend the national service to mark the Centenary of the Armistice at Westminster Abbey. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron visit the World War I French-British memorial of Thiepval, France Friday. Ludovic Marin, Pool via Reuters

PARIS - World leaders gathered in Paris will lead global commemorations on Sunday to mark 100 years since the end of World War I at a time of growing nationalism and diplomatic tensions.

Around 70 leaders including US and Russian Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will mark the centenary of the 1918 Armistice in the French capital.

British Prime Minister Theresa May and Queen Elizabeth will attend a separate event in London, while New Zealand and Australia are holding their own ceremonies.

The Paris commemorations, centered on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the Arc de Triomphe, are set to feature warnings about the modern-day danger of nationalism.

"This day is not just about remembering, but should be about a call to action," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Saturday after visiting the forest clearing in eastern France where the Armistice was signed.

Merkel will give the opening address alongside UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at a conference called the Paris Peace Forum which will take place after a memorial service on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday morning.

Conceived by French President Emmanuel Macron, the Forum is intended to highlight the importance of international institutions in helping resolve conflicts, avert wars and spread prosperity.

TENSIONS LURK

But despite the show of unity at the Arc de Triomphe, where school children will read out messages written by soldiers in eight languages, tensions are expected to lurk beneath the surface.

US President Donald Trump, whose hardline nationalism has badly shaken the Western alliance, arrived in Paris on Friday criticizing host Macron for being "insulting."

Trump took umbrage at a recent interview in which Macron talked about the need for a European army and listed the US along with Russia and China as a threat to national security.

The "America First" leader, who faced criticism on Saturday for cancelling a trip to an American cemetery because of the rainy weather, will snub the Paris Peace Forum.



Other attendees of the memorial service and Forum include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Canadian premier Justin Trudeau and Israel's Benyamin Netanyahu, as well as Putin.

With far-right nationalist politicians coming to power from Brazil to Italy to Austria, 40-year-old centrist Macron is set to invoke the war to make the case for international cooperation.

"We want to make these commemorations a time to reflect on the present, not just the past, so that they have a meaning for us today," an aide to Macron said earlier this week.

He will deliver a short speech during Sunday's ceremony, which organizers have made deliberately international and cross-cultural.

The French-born Chinese-American cellist Yo-yo Ma will perform, as will West African singer Angelique Kidjo, and a European youth orchestra with a Russian conductor.

Some 10,000 police have been drafted in to ensure maximum security in a city repeatedly targeted by jihadists since 2015.

Macron is also set to speak later at UN cultural body UNESCO and at the Peace Forum.

The Forum is part of the "fightback" against nationalism worldwide, chief organizer Justin Vaisse told AFP as he played down the significance of Trump's decision not to attend.

"The aim of the forum is to show that there are lots of forces in the international system -- states, NGOs, foundations, intellectuals, companies -- who believe we need a world of rules, an open world and a multilateral world," he said.

OTHER CEREMONIES

About 70 current-day nations were involved in the conflict that had six empires and colonial powers at its heart: Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and the Ottoman Empire.

Around 10 million soldiers are generally estimated to have been killed during the fighting and more than double that number wounded overall.

Between five and 10 million civilians are estimated to have been killed.

In Britain, church bells are set to ring out across the country at 11 am, at the same time as a national remembrance service at the Cenotaph in London.

In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison will address crowds at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra on Sunday morning. </s> Britain said Wednesday that it will send three Royal Air Force helicopters to join France's military mission against Islamic militants in Africa's Sahel region as part of closer U.K.-French intelligence and military cooperation.

The two countries will promise to step up efforts against violent extremism during a Thursday meeting between British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Sandhurst military academy near London.

The British government says May will announce she is sending three Chinook heavy-lift helicopters and dozens of personnel to Mali to provide logistical support for thousands of French troops fighting alongside African forces in a counterterrorism mission. France has led efforts to fight al-Qaida and IS-linked jihadi groups in the vast Sahel region south of the Sahara desert.

The leaders of the five main U.K. and French spy agencies are also meeting for the first time Thursday, as the two countries seek to increase intelligence-sharing. France and Britain have both faced a string of violent attacks by extremists inspired or directed by the Islamic State group.

May said U.K.-French summit "will underline that we remain committed to defending our people and upholding our values as liberal democracies in the face of any threat, whether at home or abroad."

One topic not high on the agenda is Brexit. Britain wants the meeting to underscore how the close relationship between the two neighbors won't suffer when Britain leaves the EU in 2019.

In the crisply martial surroundings of Sandhurst, where army officers have been trained since the days of the British Empire, senior ministers from the two countries will sign agreements on everything from space exploration to tackling online extremism.

In a boost to Macron, Britain is throwing its backing behind the European Intervention Initiative, a multinational European military force that the French president has proposed. He also wants a common European defense budget and security doctrine.

The plan is in its early stages, but British officials don't see it as an "EU army," an idea on which the U.K. has long been cool.

One point of tension between the countries is a 2003 deal that placed British border controls in Calais, on the French side of the English Channel. The town has become a magnet for migrants hoping to reach Britain, and the accord puts the burden of blocking their entry to the U.K. on France.

Macron wants Britain to take a bigger share of the burden by taking in more child migrants from Calais and paying more into development projects.

Britain hasn't said whether it will agree. But May's spokesman, James Slack, said the existing agreement had been "very beneficial to the U.K."

"If there were a request for further help in terms of security, we would look at (it)," he said.

Macron, on his first visit to Britain since winning the presidency in May 2017, brought a gift: an agreement for France to loan Britain the Bayeux Tapestry, an 11th-century panorama depicting the Norman conquest of England.

The medieval masterpiece depicts a key moment in British history — one with particular resonance as Britain prepares to leave the EU. </s> LONDON — Britain said Wednesday that it will send three Royal Air Force helicopters to join France's military mission against Islamic militants in Africa's Sahel region as part of closer U.K.-French intelligence and military .

The two countries will promise to step up efforts against violent extremism during a Thursday meeting between British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Sandhurst military academy near London.

The British government says May will announce she is sending three Chinook heavy-lift helicopters and dozens of personnel to Mali to provide logistical support for thousands of French troops fighting alongside African forces in a counterterrorism mission. France has led efforts to fight al-Qaida and IS-linked jihadi groups in the vast Sahel region south of the Sahara desert.

The leaders of the five main U.K. and French spy agencies are also meeting for the first time Thursday, as the two countries seek to increase intelligence-sharing. France and Britain have both faced a string of violent attacks by extremists inspired or directed by the Islamic State group.

May said U.K.-French summit "will underline that we remain committed to defending our people and upholding our values as liberal democracies in the face of any threat, whether at home or abroad."

One topic not high on the agenda is Brexit. Britain wants the meeting to underscore how the close relationship between the two won't suffer when Britain leaves the EU in 2019.

In the crisply martial surroundings of Sandhurst, where army officers have been trained since the days of the British Empire, senior ministers from the two countries will sign agreements on everything from space exploration to tackling online extremism.

In a boost to Macron, Britain is throwing its backing behind the European Intervention Initiative, a multinational European military force that the French president has proposed. He also wants a common European budget and security doctrine.

The plan is in its early stages, but British officials don't see it as an "EU army," an idea on which the U.K. has long been cool.

One point of tension between the countries is a 2003 deal that placed British border controls in Calais, on the French side of the English Channel. The town has become a magnet for migrants hoping to reach Britain, and the accord puts the burden of blocking their entry to the U.K. on France.

Macron wants Britain to take a bigger share of the burden by taking in more child migrants from Calais and paying more into development projects.

Britain hasn't said whether it will agree. But May's spokesman, James Slack, said the existing agreement had been "very beneficial to the U.K."

"If there were a request for further help in terms of security, we would look at (it)," he said.

Macron, on his first visit to Britain since winning the presidency in May 2017, brought a gift: an agreement for France to loan Britain the Bayeux Tapestry, an 11th-century panorama depicting the Norman conquest of England. </s> LONDON (AP) - Britain said Wednesday that it will send three Royal Air Force helicopters to join France’s military mission against Islamic militants in Africa’s Sahel region as part of closer U.K.-French intelligence and military cooperation.

The two countries will promise to step up efforts against violent extremism during a Thursday meeting between British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Sandhurst military academy near London.

The British government says May will announce she is sending three Chinook heavy-lift helicopters and dozens of personnel to Mali to provide logistical support for thousands of French troops fighting alongside African forces in a counterterrorism mission. France has led efforts to fight al-Qaida and IS-linked jihadi groups in the vast Sahel region south of the Sahara desert.

The leaders of the five main U.K. and French spy agencies are also meeting for the first time Thursday, as the two countries seek to increase intelligence-sharing. France and Britain have both faced a string of violent attacks by extremists inspired or directed by the Islamic State group.

May said U.K.-French summit “will underline that we remain committed to defending our people and upholding our values as liberal democracies in the face of any threat, whether at home or abroad.”

One topic not high on the agenda is Brexit. Britain wants the meeting to underscore how the close relationship between the two neighbors won’t suffer when Britain leaves the EU in 2019.

In the crisply martial surroundings of Sandhurst, where army officers have been trained since the days of the British Empire, senior ministers from the two countries will sign agreements on everything from space exploration to tackling online extremism.

In a boost to Macron, Britain is throwing its backing behind the European Intervention Initiative, a multinational European military force that the French president has proposed. He also wants a common European defense budget and security doctrine.

The plan is in its early stages, but British officials don’t see it as an “EU army,” an idea on which the U.K. has long been cool.

One point of tension between the countries is a 2003 deal that placed British border controls in Calais, on the French side of the English Channel. The town has become a magnet for migrants hoping to reach Britain, and the accord puts the burden of blocking their entry to the U.K. on France.

Macron wants Britain to take a bigger share of the burden by taking in more child migrants from Calais and paying more into development projects.

Britain hasn’t said whether it will agree. But May’s spokesman, James Slack, said the existing agreement had been “very beneficial to the U.K.”

“If there were a request for further help in terms of security, we would look at (it),” he said.

Macron, on his first visit to Britain since winning the presidency in May 2017, brought a gift: an agreement for France to loan Britain the Bayeux Tapestry, an 11th-century panorama depicting the Norman conquest of England.

The medieval masterpiece depicts a key moment in British history - one with particular resonance as Britain prepares to leave the EU. </s> French President Emmanuel Macron (L) arrives on a command car next to Chief of the Defence Staff French Army, General Francois Lecointre during the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs Elysees avenue in Paris, France, July 14, 2018. Bastille Day, the National Day of France, is held annually on July 14 to commemorate the storming of the Bastille fortress in 1789.
French President Emmanuel Macron meets with British Prime Minister Theresa May at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.