Macron, Sunak meet in London for first talks

French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak met in London on Tuesday at the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition in the British Museum, and the pair are scheduled to hold their first formal talks on Thursday. The meeting comes after the UK and France have been working together on border security and humanitarian issues. Macron will discuss the surge of migrant boats crossing the English Channel, while Sunak will raise the ongoing war in Ukraine and the need for coordinated support.

The timing is significant. Britain left the European Union in 2020, and the UK now has to negotiate its own border controls and security arrangements with France. In recent weeks, the Channel has seen a record number of small boats carrying migrants, many from Africa and the Middle East. France has tightened its coast guard patrols,