Updated
Updated · POLITICO Europe · Jul 14
Macron Awards Starmer Légion d’honneur, Making Him 1st Serving UK PM Honored
Updated
Updated · POLITICO Europe · Jul 14

Macron Awards Starmer Légion d’honneur, Making Him 1st Serving UK PM Honored

3 articles · Updated · POLITICO Europe · Jul 14

Summary

  • Paris saw Emmanuel Macron present Keir Starmer with the Légion d’honneur on Tuesday, making him the first serving UK prime minister to receive France’s top honor.
  • Macron tied the award to Starmer’s role in European security, calling his work in convening the Britain-France-led Coalition of the Willing “historic.”
  • The presentation came during the coalition’s latest Paris meeting, where allies reiterated efforts to help secure a ceasefire in Ukraine.
  • Macron also thanked Starmer for commitments to Ukraine, Europe’s security and the bilateral UK-France relationship, underscoring the award’s diplomatic as well as symbolic weight.

Insights

Given his swift political downfall, does Starmer's French honour now look like a misjudgment by President Macron?
Celebrated abroad, rejected at home: Was Starmer's foreign policy a triumph or a fatal distraction from his domestic duties?