Paris (AFP)

Emmanuel Macron on Monday thanked the foreign leaders present at the tribute to Jacques Chirac, seeing "a proof of friendship and a mark of respect" for the French people.

President Chirac "has a history with each of your countries, it represented a certain idea of ​​the world," said the head of state at the beginning of the lunch gathering at the Elysée 69 guests, mainly heads of state and government or former leaders at the end of the ceremony at Saint-Sulpice Church.

"All the French people experienced your presence this morning at the ceremony as a proof of friendship and a mark of respect," he added, according to statements reported by the Elysee.

On leaving the luncheon, former President Bill Clinton, at the White House from 1993 to 2001, remembered that Jacques Chirac was "always positive, always very French". I will miss him, I liked him, I wish that old Jacques was still there, "he added nostalgically.

"I remember him brandishing a Hillary pin in 2007. It was a political risk, and he said, I do not care if everyone knows he's my friend." I loved that. And I also remember that it was our alliance in NATO that ended the Balkan war and prevented an ethnic bloodbath in Kosovo, "he added.

At the beginning of the meal, Emmanuel Macron indicated that the lunch was conceived as "a friendly way of thinking" to Jacques Chirac. Notably with "winks" to the former president, such as the Correze salad (with gizzards) served as input. The dishes were prepared by the chef of the palace, Guillaume Gomez, who was already in the kitchen when Jacques Chirac was president, from 1995 to 2007. They were served in the dishes that were carried out during his term, said the Elysee .

Bill Clinton was sitting at Emmanuel Macron's table with King Abdullah of Jordan, Belgian Prime Ministers Charles Michel and Lebanese Saad Hariri, Presidents of Congo Denis Sassou N'Guesso and Italy's Sergio Mattarella, as well as former Senegalese leader Abdou Diouf. Former French Presidents Francois Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy chaired other tables including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Emir of Qatar Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.

© 2019 AFP