White House: the motorcade of the cemetery would have disrupted the roads

Penalized by critics for failing to attend an event honoring the death of the US military, the White House said President Donald Trump did not want to disrupt Parisian roads during a last-minute parade in a cemetery. North of France.

Trump was to lay a wreath and observe a moment of silence Saturday at the American cemetery of Aisne-Marne, located next to the Bois de Belleau and about 100 kilometers north-east of Paris. The White House has reported adverse weather conditions to the cancellation of the president's helicopter.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, press secretary, issued a statement on Sunday reporting the weather and "near-zero visibility," as well as concerns that a motorcade with short notice would have been needed. close important portions of roads in the area.

"President Trump did not want to cause this kind of unexpected disruption to the city and its inhabitants," Sanders said. She also said that the trip to Aisne-Marne took two and a half hours by car.

Instead, Trump spent much of Saturday at the residence of the US ambassador after a meeting and lunch with French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump was in Paris for events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

The White House Chief of Staff, retired General John Kelly, attended the cemetery ceremony in place of Trump; Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine General Joe Dunford; and several members of the White House staff. The Battle of Belleau Wood was a crucial conflict in the war and a pivotal meeting in the history of the Marine Corps.

The Marine Corps and the White House Military Bureau make the decision to defeat Marine One, the president's helicopter, due to bad weather. This recommendation is then presented to the White House in collaboration with the Secret Service, according to a secret service official. .

Paris was covered with clouds and dripping rain almost all day Saturday.

On Sunday, Trump attended an event scheduled to pay tribute to the victims of the American War in an American cemetery just outside Paris.