Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander meet President Macron

A ray of sunshine! Queen Maxima of the Netherlands dons mustard yellow as she and King Willem-Alexander meet President Macron and his wife Brigitte

• Queen Maxima of the Netherlands opted for a smart yellow outfit in Amsterdam
• Read more: How the female royals have rocked combat chic

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands was elegant in mustard yellow as she welcomed President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte to Amsterdam this morning. 

The French President is set to deliver a speech outlining his vision for the future of Europe during his two-day state visit to the Netherlands.

Macron’s trip to Amsterdam and The Hague is the first state visit by a French leader since Jacques Chirac 23 years ago and underscores the close links between the Netherlands and France and the two leaders. 

After arriving in Amsterdam, Macron met with Willem-Alexander and inspected a guard of honor on the square outside the capital’s royal palace as a military band played and the French and Dutch flags fluttered in a brisk breeze.

Queen Maxima, 51, was dazzling in a yellow ensemble, pairing a smart wrap coat with an orange and blue fascinator.

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, 51, was elegant in mustard yellow as she welcomed President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte to Amsterdam this morning

The French President is set to deliver a speech outlining his vision for the future of Europe during his two-day state visit to the Netherlands

She was beaming as she shook hands with Brigitte, before the group stood side-by-side to watch the guard of honor. 

Macron is set to lay a wreath at the national monument near the palace in the historic heart of the city later today.

He is later set to travel to The Hague for a meeting with leaders of both houses of the Dutch parliament before delivering his speech.

In the evening, Macron and his wife, Brigitte, will return to Amsterdam for a banquet hosted by Willem-Alexander.

On Wednesday, Macron itinerary includes visiting a science park in Amsterdam, talks with Prime Minister Mark Rutte and viewing a blockbuster exhibition of paintings by Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer at the Rijksmuseum.

The afternoon speech at a theater in The Hague comes after Macron raised eyebrows with comments on Taiwan after his recent visit to China.

‘The question we need to answer, as Europeans, is the following: Is it in our interest to accelerate (a crisis) on Taiwan? No,’ Macron was quoted as saying in an interview published Sunday in French newspaper Les Echos and by Politico Europe.

Queen Maxima was dazzling in a yellow ensemble, pairing a smart wrap coat with an orange and blue fascinator

After arriving in Amsterdam, Macron met with Willem-Alexander and inspected a guard of honor on the square outside the capital’s royal palace

The couples stood side-by-side as a military band played and the French and Dutch flags fluttered in a brisk breeze

Queen Maxima stood alongside Brigitte as she and King Willem-Alexander welcomed the couple to Amsterdam 

Brigitte and Queen Maxima watched as King Willem-Alexander and Emmanuel Macron walked past 

‘The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the U.S. agenda and a Chinese overreaction.’

The remarks raised questions about whether Macron´s views are in line with the European Union´s position and whether the bloc of 27 is able to become the ‘third superpower’ that Macron says he hopes to build within ‘a few years.’

The interview was Friday, before China launched large-scale combat exercises around Taiwan that simulated sealing off the island in response to the Taiwanese president´s trip to the U.S. last week. Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Beijing last week for talks and urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to ‘bring Russia to its senses’ over its war in Ukraine.

He emphasized the concept of ‘strategic autonomy’ for Europe which he has promoted for years. He warned of what he called the ‘trap’ that would lead to the bloc ‘getting caught up in crises that are not ours.’

China and Taiwan split in 1949 after a civil war, and the government in Beijing says the island is obliged to rejoin the mainland, by force if necessary.

Last week, King Willem-Alexander revealed that his daughters ‘see everything’ posted about them on social media but said that they have to learn to deal with online criticism.

Speaking on the Through the eyes of the King podcast, Willem-Alexander, 55, told Dutch radio presenter Edwin Evers that he has ‘very open discussions’ with his three daughters who are encouraged to share their feelings about online trolling.

Willem-Alexander and his wife, Queen Maxima, 51, have three children: Catharina-Amalia, 19, who is heir apparent to the Dutch throne, Alexia, 17, and Ariane, 15. 

President Macron was in high spirits as he was welcomed to the city by King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima 

The couples were beaming as they greeted one another in the square in Amsterdam (pictured left and right) 

Royal fans gathered as French President Macron kicked off his state visit to Amsterdam earlier today 

As quoted in the NL Times, he said: ‘They are not blind and deaf, they see everything on social media, they read everything, they hear everything. We don’t cut them off from anything. And they talk about it.’

‘It affects them,’ he added, saying that he has also had to learn to deal with negative comments on social media during his time in the public eye.

The monarch explained that he encourages his daughters not to see social media criticism as a personal attack, saying that for children growing up, it was ‘very annoying’ to see the criticism posted online. 

‘Kids don’t have a filter in that regard, but it’s reality, and they have to learn to deal with that.’

He said it is important to teach his children not to take things personally as, for the most part, he believes online trolling is not personal. 

According to RoyalCentral, the King has recorded ten episodes of the podcast to mark his first decade on the Dutch throne. 

Elsewhere, Willem-Alexander told the podcast that he hopes his eldest daughter Catharina-Amalia, formally known as the Princess of Orange, can enjoy spending time on herself and with her family before she becomes a monarch in the ‘distant future’.

He said he wished the heir apparent a long time to prepare for the role so she can start a family or do whatever she pleases.

Then he revealed he will sit down with his daughter to decide together when she will ascend the throne, but added it was a decision to be made ‘between Amalia and me’. 

Source: Read Full Article